In this brief dialogue, Dr. Jeffrey Gladden (Speaker B) and a co‑speaker (Speaker A) stress that patients are the ultimate decision‑makers in their healthcare. They argue that clinicians and insurers exist to serve the patient, not the other way around. The speakers contrast insurance‑driven, rule‑making models with out‑of‑pocket fee‑for‑service arrangements, emphasizing that patients can choose to leave any provider who does not respect their wishes. Using a trust‑and‑trustee analogy, they explain that patients retain the right to replace the “trustee” (clinician or insurer) if their health, happiness, or peace is compromised, urging listeners to actively protect their own wellbeing.
Patients need to know that they're the boss, we work for them.
That's right, they're the boss. And if you want them to collaborate with somebody else, they should be willing to collaborate with somebody else. Right? They're there. You're writing the check to them. They should be there to service you. Right? So.
Yes, yeah, but see that insurance model is the. Is what? Whatever. Because if some he who pays the bills or she who pays the bills, you know, makes the rules. And so a lot of what we do is of course out of pocket fee for service or whatever. But even if they're in that insurance model, if they're going to a primary or whatever, my message to them is, is, hey, you don't have to stay there, don't. If you don't have somebody who's listening to what you want to do, that's it. It's like I have a trust. I don't own anything. Everything is all on trust. So I have a foreign trustee. Okay, But I'm still the trust protector. I could fire and replace that trustee. Right. I don't handle the day to day business of it. But so people need to understand when you have these people working as trustees on your case, you need to protect what you, what you've granted to it. And you see what I mean? And so people need to realize and hear very succinctly, don't stay with anybody who robs you of your happiness or peace or your health. If you ever leave a clinician's office and you're like upset or bothered or whatever, you gotta go replace the pit crew, baby, because at the end of the day it's going to cost you.
