Today’s potcast is an important wake up call. Have you ever wondered what goes on inside the American Healthcare System? And why it feels like you’re falling through the cracks instead of being cared for most of the time? The complexities in healthcare are designed that way to keep average Jo’s like you and me from being knowledgeable.

Well, today we’re getting the inside scoop from a medical professional with decades of experience in all aspects of the American Healthcare System. From going to the hospital, to handling insurance companies, to finding lower cost alternatives for medications to discovering new models of patient-centric care and talking to your doctor about cannabis.

David Wilcox is a Doctorate prepared nurse who also holds a Master's in Health Administration and is Board Certified in Nursing Informatics. Dr. Wilcox has 28 years of healthcare experience in which he worked as a bedside nurse, hospital administrator, and in healthcare information technology which has helped him to develop his unique perspective on the American Healthcare System. Today we’re chatting about his recently published book “How to Avoid Being a Victim of the American Healthcare System: A Patient’s Handbook for Survival (2021).”

Did you know that medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the U.S.? As Dr. Wilcox explains, the dangerous thing about the American healthcare system is people don't get educated on it until they're actively in it and that’s too late. You need to know what you're doing before you get in there. So settle in for this empowering discussion on being an active partner in your health care.

And when you’re ready for a getaway, I invite you to join me in the beautiful wine and weed country of Sonoma County, California. As a cannabis lifestyle guide, I’ve cultivated a one of a kind farm stay experience where you can enjoy the casually baked lifestyle and the magic of sun-grown cannabis farms and vineyards. If you’re into wine, weed, wellness or all of the above, get ready to have a high time customized just for you. Click the link to learn more.

Kumbaya and cannabis, -Jo 💚

This Potcast Is Covered By MJ Relief

‘After the Show’ Notes

The current fee-for-service model doesn't work.

In lieu of fee-for-service “healthcare” where the parasitic entities get rich off of you being ill, the new accountable care organizations administering value-based healthcare are incentivized to keep you healthy.

America has the worst healthcare outcomes of the eleven most industrialized nations even though we spend so much more on healthcare. So, until things get better, you need to know how to survive the American Healthcare System.

One of the big themes I found in David’s book is being your own advocate.

Don’t be somebody who just listens to what the person in the white coat tells you and acts accordingly. David lays out many examples in this book where it's so important to do your homework, use your voice, ask a lot of questions, and push your doctors and nurses on things.

Make sure you're in charge of your information and that you're a member of your healthcare team.

Remember, medical errors are the third leading cause of death. So wave around your medications list to everyone who sees you - there's a communication disconnect between doctors, departments, etc. Don’t assume everyone’s on the same page. They’re not.

Nursers are often overworked and understaffed.

Ask questions about medications you're being prescribed and why. If your nurse seems stressed, hurried, or agitated, acknowledge it kindly and offer to wait until they have time or suggest the charge nurse might be able to help you instead. Don’t ever feel rushed to “just take the pill or injection or whatever is happening. Ask questions until you're comfortable taking the meds. Be aware of what you’re given and when.

That said, if at all possible, don't be alone in the hospital without an advocate to support you and your best interest. Because if you’re in the hospital, chances are you’re not feeling on top of your game to gather and assess all of the info coming at you.

Something important to consider if you’re a cannabis consumer concerned about talking to your doctor about your consumption:

You have the right to read your charts and see what the doctor has written about your interaction. If you disagree with the record, have it added in writing on your chart that you disagree. Challenge your doctor to get educated on cannabis and the endocannabinoid system if they’re not. Do not be passive; share relevant research, white papers, or podcasts to get the conversation started regarding your own medical cannabis use for specific health issues.

Healthcare Bluebook

Price shop and read reviews before you settle on a hospital and doctor for your surgeries! Dr. Wilcox suggests we utilize Healthcare Bluebook while doing our homework.

Healthcare Bluebook uses industry-leading objective quality and price data and claims-driven ROI reporting to deliver healthcare value insights to consumers, employers, and healthcare providers and payors. Bluebook’s intuitive online healthcare shopping solution provides employers and members with an easy-to-use benefits solution that increases movement from low-value to high-value care and prescription medications, driving savings and rapid ROI, and providing greater price predictability. Combined with a proven engagement methodology, Bluebook’s innovative suite of services empowers smarter healthcare choices, while decreasing costs and improving healthcare outcomes.

Bluebook Rx is new and now available to current and future Healthcare Bluebook customers and their members. Its launch follows the recent addition of Bluebook Comply, which helps health plans and third-party administrators meet federal healthcare price transparency deadlines, and Bluebook Insights, an interactive solution empowering benefits brokers to make value-driven recommendations for their clients. For more information on Bluebook Rx, visit healthcarebluebook.com/explore-rx.

The Sustainability Roll-up is presented by OCB Rolling Papers. In perfect harmony with natural, sustainable practices, it’s always been the OCB signature to provide the highest quality, responsibly sourced, and sustainably crafted rolling papers.

This week we’re celebrating female farmers. It wasn’t until the 1978 Census of Agriculture that the USDA even began to track the gender of our farmers. Today, women make up more than half the US population, and own an increasing number of farms. Surveys show that women own or co-own nearly half the farmland in the Midwest. Yet women are under-represented on the boards of policy-making bodies, and often encounter communications barriers and mansplaining when accessing information from agencies and institutions.

During my hunt for information, I discovered The Women Food and Ag Network (WFAN). WFAN exists so that women can provide each other the information, connections, and encouragement they need to be effective practitioners and supporters of sustainable agriculture and healthy localized food systems.

WFAN members come from all across the US and several other countries. Ranging in age from teens to women in their eighties. WFAN represents farmers, urban gardeners, environmental educators, community activists, academics, and others who care about food and our environment.

One of WFAN’s programs that drew my attention is Plate to Politics  — a nationwide effort to support and strengthen the national leadership role of women transforming our nation’s food system, from the federal agriculture policy agenda to what’s on our family’s dinner plate. The program focuses on providing leadership training to women engaged in healthy food and farming. If you know a female farmer who’s either looking for support or who’d be an excellent voice for the community, I hope you’ll share this info with them!

And if you’re looking for rolling papers worthy of canoodling your favorite sun-grown flower, look no further than OCB. All OCB papers are “plant to puff” and made in a facility that’s powered by 100% green energy. OCB offers a full line of papers made with sustainable fibers including Flax, Wood, Organic Hemp, Bamboo, and Virgin wood. All come in a full line of sizes in both booklets and cones. You’ll find no GMO’s, no chlorine and no dyes in OCB papers.  Of course, you must be 21 and older to buy OCB rolling papers and to follow the natural wonders of OCB on social @ocb_usa.

Roll With Me, a new video series launched on the Casually Baked YouTube channel in April 2021, is a collaboration with OCB Rolling Papers. Get lessons and insights on the craft of rolling while chatting about all things hemp and cannabis culture.

Complete This Form to Roll With Me On An Upcoming Episode

We all know practice makes perfectly smokeable joints so I’m engaging my cannabis industry friends to coach me. And if you’ve got some rolling tricks up your sleeve, perhaps you, too, can school me on an episode of Roll With Me.

If you too are a joint rolling novice and want to learn the craft alongside me, go ahead and get your supplies ready. Visit ocbusa.com/BAKED to get 4 booklets of OCB and a rolling tray for only $4.99! This bundle is worth 20 bucks and is around for a limited time. But the rolling skills and street cred we’re going to earn together, my friend, makes this bundle priceless as far as I’m concerned. As for you OG’s who can roll a joint one-handed, I challenge you to sample the entire line of OCB products and let me know your favorite.

Get 4 booklets of OCB and a rolling tray for only $4.99! This bundle is worth 20 bucks and is around for a limited time. But the rolling skills and street cred we’re going to earn together, my friend, makes this bundle priceless as far as I’m concerned. ✌️💚