Xerxys

Hey guys, I'm a relatively very happy person and my parents say I live in a dream world. But I believe in justice and the human spirit to do good so taken from the thread of HIV cure in tilted sexuality I have to ask, how many believe that there are cures for many of our most cumbersome diseases or the production of these cures is not - to say the least - given high priority because treating the symptoms rake in more mula!!

I don't come from this country (USA), I come from a third world and sadly I am slowly falling into the prejudiced group I just described above. I was ill a while back and went to the doctor, I must say, my GP and gastric doctor knew very little of what was affecting me. Back home, they would spend a good 20 minutes with me and diagnose very well. Well, now that I think about it, 20 minutes is better than the 2 my GP took and the 7 my gastric doctor took (Yes, I did time them, I had the superstition from scrubs and decided why not!!). Am I being a tad too rich in thinking that the health in this country does not match the nations glory profile???

jewels

I think you're right, but I don't think it's the fault of the doctors themselves.

I do believe that most genuinely want to help people, but the schools teach them to focus on quick diagnosis because our current system doesn't pay them enough to warrant more than 5 minutes per patient (for the most part). They're encouraged to have relationhships with their pharmaceutical reps, not to mentional the power of pharmaceutical lobbies.

There's so little time spent on teaching future medical professionals about nutrition and alternative healing, or even spending time asking questions to get to the root of the problem. Sadly, I've seen misdiagnoses so many times in my lifetime (many close family members that I've lost, as well as myself) that I finally realized that doctors are nothing more than educated human beings who are forced to hypothesize. And I used to think they were gods.

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We are always more anxious to be distinguished for a talent which we do not possess, than to be praised for the fifteen which we do possess.
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dlish

i agree with most of what you said, but i refuse to believe in alternative healing unless it is backed up by proven solid scientific evidence. a lot of the time it is called alternative healing because there is no solid scientific backing for such claims.

i do disagree that the doctors are not at fault too. how can they not be when they took the hippocratic oath? at the end of the day, if they are seeing someone for a mere 5 minutes because they 'dont make enough money", then they need not be in this job. who's heard of a poor doctor anyways???

heres the classical oath

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genuinegirly

Wait a second - you're saying that you think doctors purposefully misdiagnose because they want money that comes from more frequent visits?

It'd be a pretty messed up system if that is the case.

If you're not satisfied with quick visits, you need to look for another doctor. I have had physicians that glance over my charts, write a prescription, and walk out of the room without saying hi. Needless to say, I haven't returned to their offices. I have also had physicians that sit down with me and ask questions, spending ample time with me to discuss concerns. I prefer interaction. If I don't get it, I'm going to look elsewhere for care.

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"Sometimes I have to remember that things are brought to me for a reason, either for my own lessons or for the benefit of others." Cynthetiq

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Fotzlid

Yes, very much so. There is no money in cures. The last disease that was cured was back in the '50s IIRC. HIV will eventually become a chronic illness that will be managed with medications, much like diabetes or heart disease.

ASU2003

This is what I don't get. In Universal Health Care, they are supposed to cure disease and vaccinate the populace. The are supposed to push healthy living and reward people and doctors for having health patients.
The problem is that I don't see many cures and vaccines being produced outside of the United States. And we have killed off lots of vaccine research companies due to the lawsuit threat and long lead times to safely develop new drugs and get FDA approval. Although I agree with the process, there needs to be better medical research (they should be able to study anyone and find overlapping factors).

(The last vaccine that was big is the Herpes vaccine for women, but the administration of vaccines isn't as fast as it should be), and until every woman gets it and about 30 years goes by, it will be eradicated fully.

The other part is it is easier to treat a symptom than it is to find a cure. A side effect of a drug may be just what another patient needs. Getting approval for a different treatment once the drug is FDA approved is a little easier.

Xerxys

I'm listening to your gonna go far kid by the offspring and thus evoked me to write this. How many believe that the economy, oil prices, health, etc etc.. are all not working at optimum efficiency due to profit controlled organizations, to answer my earlier question, do I believe it, er.. I dont want to.....

Now people, I see it like this, we can fit a billion songs in the eye of a needle, genetics isn't that hard. Surely we can cure anything that is as widespread as HIV, we have a huge base of study, we can check to see how it affects different people, tailor and reverse engineer it specifically for the human being!!

There cant be so many people doing the exact same thing wrong!! I spoke to my aunts in Italy and Germany, I asked them if the physicians there knew what they were doing, they very confidently and enthusiastically replied yes. I swear this is not an excerpt from the movie sicko but my other doctor who was an Asian had somewhat of an idea that got me feeling better in two days. Which is probably what would have happened had I been back home in Kenya.

I'm going to go as far as sound almost narcissistic and ask why do people who sound like they've got more clout seem to know more about what they do?? You know, the cliche irrational prejudice, Asians study more, Germans are hard workers, the Europeans are better at everything else...(insert another pointless racial distinction here)...

I love USA, this country is where its at, seriously, I'm gonna be rich one day and it will be because I came to this country, but why for the love of God, doesn't everything work like it's supposed to, The only thing I see that has 100% satisfaction in returns is entertainment and arms, once again, yes, that's prejudiced, but I don't see anything making me a bit more confident, I don't just wanna be rich, I wanna change the world as well!!

Now, how the fuck do I do that???

Dammitall

I agree with what Jewels said about doctors. My parents are both doctors and I think they are among the most ethical and dedicated out there. I have heard them express their frustrations with the limits placed on them by external factors (in most cases, insurance companies), which can prevent them from providing the best quality care to their patients.

Through their accounts and others I have heard about insurance companies selectively covering some procedures over others or altogether refusing coverage for certain and at times medically necessary procedures, and it seems obvious that this is done systematically so the companies can save their own money or make more. At the same time, major drug companies push products that treat acute symptoms but cause other side effects that can conveniently be treated by other products they offer, and it's hard not to feel cynical about that, too.

As for research to cure diseases, the cynic in me also observes that research demands funding, and the sources of funding ultimately determine where the money is spent. The priorities fall depending on whom is pulling the purse strings, whether public or private sources, and patients end up answering to this, not the other way around.

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If one million people replaced a two mile car trip once a week with a bike ride, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 50,000 tons per year. If one out of ten car commuters switched to a bike, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 25.4 million tons per year. [2milechallenge.com]

highthief

That's about right, I'd say. My former doctor was very upfront about it - he wanted people in and out and was prepared to move his practice because he had too many older patients (with numerous problems who want to chat) and it slowed his turnover down. Meanwhile my current doc will take as much time as is needed.

Doctors are like anyone else - some are good and some are rotten.

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