ONE REASON THAT THE US SPENDS SO MUCH ON HEALTH CARE AND GETS SUCH POOR RESULTS....IS THE TENDENCY FOR SPENDING TO BE CONCENTRATED ON THE TERMINALLY ILL...
THERE IS NO CURE FOR BEING 85 YEARS OLD....OR HAVING TERMINAL ILLNESSES...FOR WHICH THERE IS NO RECOVERY POSSIBLE...
YET WE TREAT THE ELDERLY AND THE TERMINALLY ILL "AS IF" THERE WAS..."A CURE."
THUS, BILLIONS ARE SPENT ON PROCEEDURES THAT ARE SIMPLY NOT GOING TO DO ANY GOOD...
THE HOSPITAL ICUs ARE A CASH COW FOR THE MEDICAL SPECIALISTS...WHO ARE PRESCRIBING AND PERFORMING PROCEEDURES THAT EXTEND LIFE BY A FEW WEEKS...
BUT WITH NO REALISTIC HOPE FOR A RECOVERY...AND CERTAINLY NO HOPE FOR A QUALITY LIFE...AFTERWARDS.
IN AMERICAN ICU's ---"JUST OXYGENATIING TISSUES"--- IS THE GOAL...NOT CURING THE PATIENT...
MANY PEOPLE ARE "CURED" TO THE POINT OF BECOMING LONG TERM "VEGETABLES" WHO ARE THEN TRANSFERED INTO THE NURSING HOME SYSTEM...
NEVER MIND THAT THIS IS A TERRIFYING EXPERIENCE FOR THE ELDERLY OR TERMINALLY ILL "VICTIMS"....AND THEIR FAMILIES...
SOME "END OF LIFE" RATIONING...OF "HEROIC" OR "USELESS" PROCEDURES ON THE TERMINALLY ILL WOULD BE AN IMPROVEMENT...
AND WOULD CUT BILLIONS FROM THE AMERICAN HEALTH CARE DEBACLE...
THIS IS WHERE THE OLDER ROLE OF THE FAMILY DOCTOR ...AND RELIGION COME INTO PLAY...
SOMETIMES IT'S JUST BETTER TO LET GRANDMA "GO WITH JESUS"...
THAN TO OPT FOR THE GASTRIC FEEDING TUBE AND THE RESPIRATOR...UNTIL TOTAL ORGAN COLLAPSE ... OR ICU INFECTION "DO THEIR THING...!"
IN A VERY REAL SENSE...MANY ELDERLY AND TERMINALLY ILL PATIENTS ARE BEING "TORTURED TO DEATH" IN AMERICAN HOSPITALS TODAY...ALL FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE FEE FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS...
