"The Starbucks syndrome in healthcare," an article published in the Los Angeles Times' newspaper, written by Daniel J. Stone, whom practices internal medicine in Beverly Hills. Stone asserts his feelings about how Angelenos approach healthcare by comparing their need to micro manage their healthcare, having it exactly how they want it, when they want it. Kind of like how they micro manage their coffee being made at Starbucks, "decaf caramel extra hot lowfat macchiatos. Think of it as the Starbucks syndrome in healthcare." Stone asserts that in the healthcare field in Los Angeles, resources are being needlessly overused due to patient demand and because doctors feel apathy towards the patients, thus making the reader aware of one of the many …show more content…
First, Stone appeals to the readers logos (logic) and also to their pathos (emotions), meaning Stone uses data to support his argument. By stating that "Medicare statistics... reveal that Los Angeles leads the nation in the amount of medical services provided during the last six months of a person's life." This also shows empathy by the doctors that they are taking every possible measure to help ease a patients mind about what is going on with their body during the last few months they have left to live, even if its not medically necessary, but he is finding that in the end that these tests are not always medically necessary and don't lead to a different or better outcome. He also points out that "Healthy seniors here are also big consumers of healthcare, getting about 65% more MRI studies and utilizing ambulances three times as often as seniors elsewhere." Stone is a medical doctor and practices internal medicine in Beverly Hills, so he has first hand knowledge that unnecessary measure are being taken, which are costly, time consuming and not always medically …show more content…
His tone is very "matter of fact" giving his take on what is happening in the heath field. The author is reaching out to the readers of the magazine to address the problem of unnecessary procedures being done. Stone's has a strong opinion on the matter and it comes through in his tone of the article. He provides the reader with great examples as to why he feels so strongly. "Patient demands put doctors under considerable pressure... doctors can find themselves caught in a bind between anxious and demanding patients and insurance networks that expel doctors with inefficient practice patterns." He feels healthcare should not be treated like Starbucks or any other fast food business, for that matter. Stone's argument is people in Los Angeles are so use to feeling entitled to having everything done to their specifications. They are so use to having everything exactly the way they want it, they also feel they are entitled to this same behavior in regards to their healthcare. Now a days with the internet and sites like WebMD, people are diagnosing themselves and expecting to have all the tests done to rule out the different possible diagnosis, without consulting a real medical doctor