[extropy-chat] Who Gets Expensive Treatments Under Socialism?.

[Stathis Papaioannou]

On 4/25/07, ben <benboc at lineone.net> wrote:
>
>
> I've wondered before if there would be a niche for 'professional health
> carers', i.e. people who get paid to care about (not for) your health.
> They would be augmented by expert medical systems, know enough about
> medicine to know when it's time to call in the big guns, but above all,
> they would be 'carers' (as in 'care about', rather than 'care for').
>
> The idea is that if you subscribe to this service (who would actually
> pay for it? - i don't know), you are guaranteed someone who will
> familiarise themselves with your medical history, and be in a good
> position to interpret (with the help of expert systems and other
> resources) any medical problems you may have. This person sticks with
> you, you know who you are talking to, you build up a relationship with
> them, and (hopefully) gain confidence in their skills. They will refer
> you to a GP or specialist when appropriate, and perhaps even take the
> hassle out of arranging appointments. They would take a lot of the
> pressure off doctors who have to deal with people who just need talking
> to in order to feel a lot better, and a lot of people would feel a lot
> happier with the knowledge that there was one person that they know, who
> they turn to if they have a problem, and that that person is
> knowledgeable enough to talk sense to them, relate their problems to
> their personal history, and refer them to a more qualified person where
> appropriate.
>
> They'd also know when to be proactive, and pester you to get that pap
> test/cholesterol test/prostate exam/whatever done, and have the skills
> to talk to you without hacking you off.
>
> This strikes me as a better system than the anonymous consultant that
> you've never seen before and who has 30 seconds to familiarise
> themselves with your entire history from some notes written by 14
> different people before talking to you.
>
> I dunno, maybe it's a tall order, but i think it would be a vast
> improvement.


You're describing GP's, or perhaps community nurses. Patients with rare
conditions these days may well have more "expert" knowledge about their
condition than the GP, but they still benefit from a generalist with a
broader perspective on their health needs.

Stathis Papaioannou
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