Western medicine today

[tzviadancer]

A thought on western healthcare: I think our system of giving medical care has become morally bankrupt. I’m not talking about the lack of universal insurance, though that’s a whole other issue. I’m talking about the way we cling to old ethical ideas from an earlier age (at all costs try to preserve life) to the point that we have become more

Comments

that book sounds neat. would you recommend it?

[heatrose]

actually, it seems a like doctors are pretty good at end-of-life things (from my recent experience, talking to people, reading various things, and from doing a public policy paper on euthanasia back in the DAY) and letting people go, which is a small but important part of what you are saying

Re: that book sounds neat. would you recommend it?

[tzviadancer]

I agree that a large part of the problem is that our society has no idea how to feel and think about death. It seems like it would be possible to do better, to integrate it more into our understanding of life, but I don't know enough about other societies to say whether any culture has managed to do this, or what a better way would consist of

[gimblegyre]

ah ha, i have a book recommendation for you, if you don't already know it: Number Our Days, by Barbara Myerhoff. it's an anthropological study (i read it for the same class as Spirit) of a group of elderly folks who spend their days at a jewish community center. quite a bit about the health of the soul and end-of-life issues.

http://www.amazon.com/Number-Our-Days-Community-American/dp/0452011221

[tzviadancer]

Thanks! I'll definitely look for it. It's especially relevant because I work with a lot of elderly folks at a Jewish community center...

[gimblegyre]

exactly! dunno why i've never thought to mention it to you before.