Patient Navigator Blog – Patient Navigator

Medicare Advantage Plans – Beware!

Elisabeth Schuler — Tue, 22 Nov 2022 19:07:07 +0000

Beware! This year’s Medicare Open Enrollment period runs from October 15 – December 7. I call it “MediScare” season because private Medicare Advantage insurers try to scare consumers into signing up for their plans. These Advantage plans often over-promise and under-deliver, putting patients at risk. During Open Enrollment, current and future Medicare recipients are bombarded with television…

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Four Steps for Successful Patient Advocacy

Elisabeth Schuler — Mon, 06 Jun 2022 19:07:47 +0000

In this podcast published in June 2022 by the Moss Reports, I’ll speak about the journey that led me into my pioneering second career as a patient navigator and the patient advocacy profession that has since been created as a necessity to overcome the failings and complexities of the American healthcare delivery system. I will also share my four “buckets” of tips that will teach you basic…

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Healthcare Decisions- Lessons from Covid

Elisabeth Schuler — Thu, 26 May 2022 20:30:47 +0000

This post was contributed by guest writer Alicia Blair In Carnegie Mellon University’s insights on making decisions in a COVID-19 world, researchers note that the pandemic has posed difficult but interdependent decision-making challenges for professionals and individuals alike. Professionals need to base decisions on relevant health protocols, such as when to keep establishments open.

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Patient Advocacy – History and Trends

Elisabeth Schuler — Mon, 24 Jan 2022 19:57:53 +0000

When I tell people that I am a patient advocate and my job is to help patients and families navigate through our healthcare system, they often respond “I wish I had known you when ….” They tell me stories about when they were overwhelmed, confused, afraid, or unsatisfied by our complicated, expensive, and often inefficient healthcare system in the United States: an aging parent receiving…

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Medicare Patients Need to Stay Informed

Elisabeth Schuler — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 19:52:22 +0000

A recent article in the Washington Post caught my attention and reminded me how important it is for anyone on Medicare to keep up with rule changes. This article is especially timely for any patient scheduled for a surgery because of some drastic changes to the list of surgeries that can be performed as a hospital in-patient. This new rule, put in place by the previous administration…

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When Serious Illness Strikes

Elisabeth Schuler — Fri, 10 Jul 2020 17:58:48 +0000

My journey through the complexities of the American medical system began in 1998 when my 2-year old daughter was diagnosed with an inoperable brainstem tumor. We were immediately forced to make life-and-death decisions during a time of intense fear and vulnerability, with no experience upon which to draw. I felt adrift in an unknown universe without a lifeline. Any serious diagnosis thrusts…

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Patient Navigators – Who We Are and What We Do

Elisabeth Schuler — Tue, 07 Jul 2020 19:51:34 +0000

Patient Navigators and Healthcare Advocates: Who They Are and What They Do By Elisabeth Schuler Founder and CEO, Patient Navigator LLC Updated July 2020 Patient advocacy, or patient navigation, has gained attention as a profession, both in the media and in the popular lexicon, because it fills so many gaps in the current American health care system.

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Washington Post Article on Patient Advocates

Elisabeth Schuler — Tue, 23 Jun 2020 16:43:34 +0000

Washington Post article about how patient advocates can help during Covid-19 and other situations. I’m very pleased to be included in my hometown newspaper!

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Patient Advocates – Consumers’ Checkbook Reporting

Elisabeth Schuler — Tue, 28 Apr 2020 18:26:38 +0000

Patient Navigator LLC was interviewed for this excellent reporting by Jeff Blyskal at Consumers’ Checkbook. His article explains clearly the many ways an advocate can help patients and families solve problems and find their way through the healthcare maze. If you’d like to learn more about how an advocate can help you, now or in the future, please contact me at info@patientnavigator.com for a free…

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Crazy Medication Costs Can Be Conquered

Elisabeth Schuler — Tue, 22 May 2018 15:09:16 +0000

Americans pay more for most medications than most countries. The power of the pharmaceutical lobbies is a topic for another day. But the consequences are real for every American, whether using private insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, other insurance or paying out-of-pocket. A friend of mine was recently diagnosed with a type of adult-onset asthma. After three years of coughing…

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