Survival instincts propel 'difficult patient' to insist on quality care

Michelle Mayer had to become a "difficult patient" before she could get her physicians to accurately diagnose the disease that was destroying her health. And once the diagnosis was made, she had to continue to be what many physicians describe as "difficult" before she could get the best treatment for scleroderma, a chronic autoimmune disease in which hardening of the skin is a major element.