Public Health :)

Okay, so first day of my Intro to Public Health class and it was great! It really does make a difference when you are interested in the topic. I've already started the reading and I find it so interesting. Here are some of my favorite quotes from our first reading assignment. They really prove that some people just need to think.

"Those who opposed the Democrats' health care push appear to feel no embarrassment that the United States has recently ranked 30th out of 31 countries in child mortality rates, according to the Centers for Disease Control–that's 22 places behind Portugal, 3 places behind Cuba, and ahead of only Slovakia. Instead, these opponents keep braying and bragging that U.S. health care is the envy of the world. And for those with access to American medicine’s most advanced and high-tech interventions–like, say, members of Congress–the claim may hold true. But if you believe that all people deserve a chance to enjoy good health, then you must think about what's available to the least as well as the most advantaged among us, and ask yourself: "How can we share resources more fairly so that everyone has access to basic preventive and primary care?"


Basically... yeah. Can I say it any better? No, but David Tuller certainly can.


"As a nation, we suffer from an appealing delusion: that rugged individualism and self-reliance define the American character and represent the source of our country's greatness. Now, I have nothing against rugged individualism and self-reliance—better to possess those traits than not, I suppose. But the national fetish for Horatio Alger heroics and "pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps"-ism implies that everything is possible for those who work hard, and that those who cannot overcome obstacles have only themselves to blame. This is preposterous, of course; it obliterates the weight of historical injustice in shaping today's discriminatory landscape. It also ignores what public health researchers call "the social determinants of health"–the factors that influence patterns of disease and wellness in the first place: the neighborhoods where we live, our socioeconomic status, the quality of our food and water supplies, and our access to education and information."

 I agree completely. Sometimes hard work cannot outweigh all the benefits that come with being born with resources and status. I know people who work very hard to get to wear they are, however I also see people who do NOT work hard and yet always seem to come out on top? Someone should tell the sick and injured that they should just work harder, then they'll get better.

"Nonetheless, for reasons of history, culture, and some weird national sociopathy, we have been willing to tolerate levels of health care inequality unique in the developed world. No health insurance? Sorry, not my problem! Your kid has cancer? Too bad, get a job! Or, as our last president–the compassionate conservative–famously declared, "People have access to health care in America. After all, you just go to an emergency room." Anyone who has ever spent time in an urban ER knows how ridiculous that statement sounds. And to make a possibly impertinent observation, emergency rooms are designed to handle actual emergencies, not the runny noses, allergies, sprained ankles, and other primary care needs of the tens of millions of Americans who aren't president, don't live in a beautiful mansion at taxpayer expense, and don't have insurance at all, much less gold-plated coverage paid for by the federal government. However much right-wing pundits complain about the sausage-making messiness of the legislative process that produced the health care bill, the enactment of a reform package guaranteeing access to all represents a profound shift in national perspective."

"It's not at all surprising that the ferocious heart of the health-care debate has been outrage over the mandate that everyone purchase insurance. I understand why this upsets the Tea Partiers, given their distrust of the federal government and their belief that the bill will bankrupt the country. I get that they see forced participation as an infringement on the personal freedom they view as their birthright. So I'm thrilled about the money the country will save when these rugged and self-reliant patriots refuse to accept those government handouts known as Medicare and Social Security." :)