Too Positive to be a Patient Advocate?
October 30th, 2009 | 
Author: Are you “too happy” to be a patient advocate? Is your “positive attitude” a detriment to the very people you long to help? As a chiropractor who finds joy and laughter a powerful healing elixir in my chiropractic clinic, my answer would be “Of course you’re not. You’re perfect for the position!” But, according to best-selling author, Barbara Ehrenreich, in her new book “Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America,” there’s just too much “positive thinking” out there, especially when it comes to a patient’s health. Wow! What a concept!
In a recent interview Ms. Ehrenreich said, “There’s a lot of suffering out there. And the message is always just, ‘Swallow it, suck it up and put on a smiley face and do not descent, complain, protest or whatever.’” But, if you’re a patient advocate, you know that that is not the message at all. Patients need to complain and protest when something is not going well. In fact, a study was done that revealed that it is the “Type A” personality who usually ends up leaving the hospital earlier and in better shape than those amiable types, otherwise known as “Type B” personalities. But, that doesn’t mean that “anger” heals (in fact, the opposite is true, as Ms. Ehrenreich will be the first to tell you), but it does means that patients need to speak up for themselves and when they cannot, for whatever reason, they need a patient advocate who will. But, they also need an advocate who believes that they will “pull through,” and one that does his or her job with a smile and, yes, with a positive attitude!
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I saw that woman interviewed on John Stewart, she is unbelievable!