I recently heard a doctor predicting the future of health care under “Obamacare.” He predicted an evolving downgrade in the quality of health care providers to go with a reduction in coverage for expensive medical procedures. His conclusion was that the best thing people can do is “not get sick”.
At first this sounds silly. But the fact is that 70-80 % of our health issues in America are a result of lifestyle. The people of Japan are the healthiest in the world. They follow Eastern philosophy and treat food as medicine. They utilize various supplements and herbs in addition to a healthier diet in their daily lifestyle. Western medicine is utilized briefly when a condition arises which their supplements and herbs cannot cure. Things such as a broken bone or appendicitis. But their stay in the hospital is very short with a quick return home to utilize herbs and supplements to heal and resume their healthy lifestyle.
If more Americans take responsibility to change their habits and create a healthier lifestyle, the country as a whole will become healthier. The reliance on the health care system will decrease proportionately. This, of course, requires more people to think and take personal responsibility. Philosopher, Bertrand Russel, once said most people would rather die than think, and many do. If Obamacare does create a poorer quality of health care, we can only hope it brings with it the incentive for America to increase its interest in a healthier lifestyle. Wouldn’t that be ironic? The decision to create a program that encourages more reliance on government for health care could result in greater self reliance.
I think it actually is a good concept, and historically this has been proven to be true. Up until the early 20th century many people had to depend on food and home cures to stay healthy, and only to call on the doctor when absolutely necessary. It wasn't until you started to get into what amounted to "turf" wars over who had the right to care for a patient that you started to see the dependency on hospitals, procedures, and medication. A case in point was birthing. It reached a point where it was considered a necessity to have the baby in the hospital, and to get away from allowing mothers to nurse their own children. Pretty much it was a case where people were being educated that they didn't know what was right for their bodies.
ReplyDeleteNecessity may well encourage them to again pay heed to what their bodies need.
I wish I could remember the title of a book I saw at Barnes & Noble a few months back. It was written by a doctor who had started her career in a horrible section of Los Angeles. The hospital she was at served pretty much the jetsam of society, and had little in the way of equipment or supplies. The staff was dependent on personal care and observation.
And they had a high success rate because "old fashioned" observation and care.