“I think it is enormously difficult, that no one takes responsibility. I feel so powerless and helpless.”
so says Anne Mette Christensen from Aarhus.
The 30-year-old woman is potentially seriously ill, but no one knows yet, what she fails. She is just one out of many who feel let down by the healthcare system, and who do not have confidence that the doctor listens.
Unlike her, most of the people, B. T. in recent times have described, got a diagnosis.
fortunate is the young woman does not.
Anne Mette Christensen’s uncertain fate, we go into detail with later.
First we need a turn around one of them, which recognises that we in Denmark can do it better.
“We know from our members and from our studies, that it is a massive problem in the health service that patients experience, they are kastebolde between the different healthcare sectors and specialties. One becomes lost in the system, if you do not take responsibility, and it is not all that powers to do it,” says Morten Freil, president of the Danish Patients.
Anne Mette Christensen has been attended to by a dermatologist, a neurologist, a infektionslæge, a stomach – and tarmlæge as well as several doctors.
She has been scanned several times – most recently in a PET scanner, which showed increased activity in the lymph nodes and breast.
“It is frustrating to be sick at the same time that I try to keep me ‘inside the heat’ in order to be sure that I won’t get lost. It is troubling and absurd, that I will be completed and the lands at home, without anyone doing anything, ” she says.
After a year and a half when she still doesn’t, what she fails. The suspicion has occurred in cancer, autoimmune disease or infection.
Anne Mette Christensen has intermittent fever, iron deficiency, reactive lymph nodes and pain from the chest, arm and one entire side of the body. She gets bruises, rashes, hives and sores. Just to mention some of her symptoms.
Before she became ill, she had own business as an art director, lived in a large house with his girlfriend and three-year-old daughter. Now she has had to close down his business for an indefinite time, and she is struggling to maintain the smooth functioning of privacy.
“It is a huge challenge to be a mother, lover and friend, at the same time, I feel like I ‘fighting for my life’. It requires more of me than it did to drive the business. The biggest problem is that I have to fight to be heard,” says Anne Mette Christensen, who feel left to themselves in the system.
Morten Freil highlights a so-called ‘patientansvarlig doctor’ as a solution that could solve the Anne Mette’s and other patients ‘ perplexity.
“You have to look at how you can do it better, so there is a responsibility, also, when the patient prints to the general practice or the municipality. Who has the responsibility for follow up?,” he says.
Doctors president, Andreas Rudkjøbing, backs up, that there must be a patientansvarlig doctor to meet the problems as them, Anne Mette experience. He points out that there have been different efforts to make patients ‘ way through the healthcare system easier, but it has not removed all the problems:
“It means, unfortunately, not all patients experience the straight course of therapy with clarity about who has behandlingsansvaret,” he says.
Anne Mette Christensen calls for specialists, looks at her body as a unified whole, rather than only looking at the part of her body, which relates to their particular specialty.
“If you only have 25 per cent. of the puzzle, then it is clear, it is difficult to assemble it. So I’m standing there with, for example, blood from the lungs. Without the help. Without any explanation. So I miss that the doctors are more aware on which of ‘their’ symptoms, which may occur in other specialties,” she says.
The 30-year-old woman knows not what she does now. She will, however, continue to try to push to get a diagnosis, even though she thinks it is difficult to gather forces to fight, when she is sick.
“I hope there’s someone out there who can recognize my symptoms, or someone who can help me to take responsibility for me, leading up to a diagnosis and treatment, so I can get my quality of life back.”
In faktaboksen on this page you can see what sundhedsordførerne seems to introduce a patientansvarlig doctor.
