Washington, D.C.—Sanjay Prasad, MD, FACS, author of Resetting Healthcare Post-COVID-19 Pandemic: The Patient Handbook, was interviewed about his book on Full Stop with Mark Preston on SiriusXM Radio. Preston, a Senior Political Analyst for CNN who has also worked on campaigns, opened the interview by relating how Prasad basically saved his life, in 2008, when he required emergency surgery. It was a close-run thing as the scheduled surgeon suddenly retired and Prasad stepped in to save the day.
Preston noted that, because of the current political gridlock, it is "sometimes necessary to look outside the system to get answers." He said that Prasad had a "new book out with ideas on how to keep healthcare costs down, and how to keep doctors and consumers more honest with one another."
Prasad's opening statement admitted that there were "many problems in the healthcare system, but the one causing the most trouble on the surgical side was the referral system." It is loaded with favoritism based on friendships, hospital/doctor contracts, cross ownership of facilities and more. A primary problem with the system is zero transparency and discerning where the labyrinth begins or ends. Resetting Healthcare is about empowering consumers with info sharing tools in order to make vital decisions easier, which may include other approaches as Prasad reveals that 20% of all surgeries are unnecessary.
"The referral process is the heart of the problem in surgical care," says Dr. Prasad. "Patients are referred by their primary care doctor or emergency room physician to surgeons without concern for cost or outcome. Once told they need surgery, most patients are shocked, nervous, anxious, and scared. They feel they must trust the opinion of their physician without questioning anything."
Listen to the whole interview at https://www.siriusxm.com/clips/clip/11636b97-aae8-46db-9670-7fc9076214b4/bf9c356d-3718-4a0d-bc56-072a09b2649c
Dr. Prasad has been a practicing surgeon for nearly thirty years in the super-specialized field of otology, neurotology, and skull base surgery, a subspecialty within otolaryngology head and neck surgery (ENT). Prasad is one of the few surgeons in his specialty to complete three fellowships in neurotology, advanced head and neck oncologic surgery, and cranial base surgery. He is an assistant clinical professor at George Washington University and the founder of SurgiQuality and SurgiConnect. His thirty years as a surgeon has given him deep insight into the flaws in the surgery referral process.
"I founded SurgiQuality with the mission to connect surgical patients to best-in-class surgeons who operate in a cost-efficient environment," says Dr. Prasad. "Using SurgiQuality, a personalized concierge hand-holds the patient from the moment they are told they need surgery all the way through recovery."
The Covid-19 pandemic has reset how healthcare operates. In an age when technology and online visits have become mainstream, patients deserve to understand their options. They deserve to know that they are getting the best possible care.
"I want people to realize that we have a serious quality issue in medicine today," says Dr. Prasad. "The healthcare system must be held accountable. I firmly believe that SurgiQuality plays a key role in helping patients regain control of the healthcare process, empowering them with the tools to make well-informed, health-positive decisions."
Resetting Healthcare Post-COVID-19 Pandemic: The Patient Handbook, ISBN-10: 1737199416 ISBN-13: 978-1737199410, Sanjay Prasad, MD, FACS, available at Amazon.
Sanjay Prasad, MD, FACS, has been a practicing surgeon for nearly thirty years in the super-specialized field of otology, neurotology, and skull base surgery, a subspecialty within otolaryngology head and neck surgery (ENT). Prasad is one of the few surgeons in his specialty to complete three fellowships in neurotology, advanced head and neck oncologic surgery, and cranial base surgery. He is an assistant professor at George Washington University.
As a medical director for an ambulatory surgery center, he was one of the first to start bundling surgical services for all-inclusive prices in 2014. In the same year, Prasad founded SurgiPrice, Inc. with subsidiaries SurgiQuality and SurgiConnect, with a mission to help surgical patients connect to best-in-class surgeons who operate in a cost-efficient environment.
He is the author of Resetting Healthcare, which examines the lack of transparency in surgical care and offers SurgiQuality as a solution. Prasad practices and lives in the Washington, DC, area with his amazing wife, Deepika, and their four very accomplished adult children, Meghna, Kiran, Neha, and Dilan.
You can find more information on Dr. Sanjay Prasad and Resetting Healthcare at www.resettinghealthcare.com.
Media Contact: For a review copy of Resetting Healthcare or to arrange an interview with Dr. Sanjay Prasad, contact Scott Lorenz of Westwind Communications Book Marketing at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on twitter @abookpublicist