Medical science is not like mathematics or economics .
- It is about how a bundle of human cells(organs) behave at times of adversity .
- It is about how our mind takes on the body .
- It is also about , how the care takers Heal/Manipulate /Manhandle these cells at times of distress !
We know, two persons with identical injuries , sustained in a car crash one dies within an hour , while the other with a many fold serious injury successfully fight the trauma and walk out of hospital with victorious .That is the fighting spirit .This is either inherited are nurtured or both.
This implies , an accidental injury may be an external , unpredictable event, while the response to that injury is predetermined or even a predictable response !
In the name of modern science , we “the human animals” are trying to buy this fighting spirit with money.We are made to believe , survival and well-being is a commodity and can be bought with high cost medicines , and high cost care .
Remember , one of the most astonishing medical fact is , while we may struggle to induce swine flu in a laboratory on a given individual ( Even if , H1Ni viral concentrate is infused or inhaled ) , an other person gets this disease , while simply flying over an infected country . Such is the complexity of the host response system in medicine .
So , it is foolish to think health can be bought or maintained with money power or modern hi-tech medical care .At best it can save few lives with its life supporting drugs and devices . Ultimately, human survival is determined by the way we live and the way our ancestors lived and how we fight the illness.
Yogi’s of Himalayas lived for more than 100 years without the need for drug eluting stents and LV assist devices .
Having totally misunderstood the concept of health and illness the world is wondering how on earth , we can reduce the escalating cost of healthy living (pseudo health !)
An article in the current NEJM ponders over , Why in Grand junction, Colorado ,USA , the health care cost is very much lower , without compromising the quality of life and survival.
The answer is very simple .There is some body in that county , who dares to think beyond raw science and adds little bit of common sense ! Obviously he has to be rewarded and this model need to be replicated elsewhere.
http://healthpolicyandreform.nejm.org/?p=12706
This article discusses the phenomenon of high quality , low cost medical care , but what it misses out is , the reverse could also be true !
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