Official "Seattle Freeze" Discussion Thread (taxes, bills)

[seattlenextyear]

I'm impressed that a patient can just walk into a clinic and fire the doctors. I wish I had that kind of clout.

[shoegal111]

Originally Posted by seattlenextyear

I'm impressed that a patient can just walk into a clinic and fire the doctors. I wish I had that kind of clout.

Who said anything about a clinic? Also, whenever you severe a professional relationship, allbeit your hairdresser, interior decorator, doctor, dentist, etc. because they are not acting in your best interest, it is considered firing. So these doctors were fired meaning I severed the relationship because they were not acting in my best interest.

Never had an issue with my dentist in Seattle. He was ok.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by seattlenextyear

I'm impressed that a patient can just walk into a clinic and fire the doctors. I wish I had that kind of clout.

If your doctor is not doing anything in your best interested, shouldn't you get rid of him/her?

[shoegal111]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

If your doctor is not doing anything in your best interested, shouldn't you get rid of him/her?

Yes, refer to post #1016.

[No attitude]

The "locals" are somewhat paranoid and a bit fearful to a point judgemental but reserved.It may actually have something to do with the weather and not seeing the sun enough,listen to the lyrics from all the grunge music that originated there.I'm sure it is also the politics as well.Weather affects people in different ways.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by No attitude

The "locals" are somewhat paranoid and a bit fearful to a point judgemental but reserved.It may actually have something to do with the weather and not seeing the sun enough,listen to the lyrics from all the grunge music that originated there.I'm sure it is also the politics as well.Weather affects people in different ways.

How does cloudy weather make people paranoid?

[shoegal111]

Originally Posted by No attitude

The "locals" are somewhat paranoid and a bit fearful to a point judgemental but reserved.It may actually have something to do with the weather and not seeing the sun enough,listen to the lyrics from all the grunge music that originated there.I'm sure it is also the politics as well.Weather affects people in different ways.

Weather doesn't cause people to behave badly. Rain, clouds, cold and snow occur elsewhere on a regular basis and people don't behave badly because of it.

[shoegal111]

Originally Posted by goldengrain

I would also think that there are enough transplants to find each other and get a life together.

They do. But why move to a new area but I transplants are also looking to make friends with locals. They do in other areas of the country with no problems and this is very disappointing to them. The frustration comes with the fact that there is such an insincerity about it all. Locals don't want to believe it exists. It's one thing to say "we don't want you here" directly but it's another to say "Nice to meet you, let's get together, etc." when it's really not meant.

What suprises me most is that a few locals have asked me or transplant friends if we really feel the freeze and when we say yes, they ask for examples, we give them and then they just retreat away again in disbelief. The we think "why did you even bother to ask".

[shoegal111]

Originally Posted by shoegal111

Absolutely, transplants experience it and there definitely is a great divide between the locals and transplants. Transplants are willing to invite locals into their circle, however, locals won't invite transplants into their circle.

While we are chatting about all of this. Let's get off the topic of the weather and talk about something with some more serious implications related to the freeze- the freeze in the medical community in Seattle.

I fired 4 primary care doctors in 3 years while living in Seattle. All 4 were from the area and schooled there as well. All were pretty arrogant and did not listen to me and unfortunately I paid a dear price for it. I had to file complaints with the state and my insurance company. I had one doctor refuse to write a lab order for a simple blood test for food poisoning that myself and others on a business trip contracted. Two others had already been positively diagnosed with a test, we all had the same symptoms. He refused to return my phone calls for a week and then insisted I come to the office (350.00) before he would give me the order. I had ask my old doctor from the east coast to do me a favor and order the test. He did and I also tested positive.

I have seen three other doctors while in Seattle that were not arrogant and really listened to me. All three were not from Seattle originally and were educated either on the east coast or in California.

I have a friend who is an ER nurse who moved to Seattle last year. She is appauled at how attempted suicide patients are treated. Basically, they are fixed up and shown the door since Seattle does not have adequate mental health services. She tells me that some doctors have actually said to these patients " you didn't do it right, maybe next time you'll get it right." She was completely floored. Such a shame that the city and King County finish last in the country for mental health services yet they are also one of the wealthiest cities/counties in the country.

People still want to talk about the "freeze" being excused because of the weather so I'll respond to my own post with a couple of related points that might want to give members some thought about what I see as a mean-spiritedness in the Seattle local culture:

"Children's Hospital & Regional Medical Center admits it was acting outside the law when its doctors performed a controversial hysterectomy on a severely disabled 6-year-old girl'-Seattle Times (Local News | Children's Hospital says it should have gone to court in case of disabled 6-year-old | Seattle Times Newspaper)

and from a report on KOMO News website on Feb. 23rd(Baby Needs a Heart Transplant | KOMO News - Seattle, Washington YouNews™): "Oregon baby, Laith Joshua Dougherty, is only a few months old and is in need of a heart transplant at Children's Hospital in Seattle. The family's health insurance will not cover a majority of the transplant, and so Children's has refused to admit him until the family can pay $1.5 million for the transplant up front."

Can someone explain where's the compassion?

[Jennibc]

Originally Posted by shoegal111

People still want to talk about the "freeze" being excused because of the weather so I'll respond to my own post with a couple of related points that might want to give members some thought about what I see as a mean-spiritedness in the Seattle local culture:

"Children's Hospital & Regional Medical Center admits it was acting outside the law when its doctors performed a controversial hysterectomy on a severely disabled 6-year-old girl'-Seattle Times (Local News | Children's Hospital says it should have gone to court in case of disabled 6-year-old | Seattle Times Newspaper)

and from a report on KOMO News website on Feb. 23rd(Baby Needs a Heart Transplant | KOMO News - Seattle, Washington YouNews™): "Oregon baby, Laith Joshua Dougherty, is only a few months old and is in need of a heart transplant at Children's Hospital in Seattle. The family's health insurance will not cover a majority of the transplant, and so Children's has refused to admit him until the family can pay $1.5 million for the transplant up front."

Can someone explain where's the compassion?

As much as I agree that the freeze is real, I don't think the examples you cite are on point. There are plenty of hospitals around the country that wouldn't provide a 1.5 million dollar procedure free of charge. Would you recommend that people give up a paycheck to do so? Why doesn't the local community where the baby lives step up to the plate and hold fundraisers (didn't read the articles so maybe they already have but my point is that what you are deeming as a lack of compassion is completely unrelated to the social condition known as the freeze.)