Removing the Scarlet ‘C’: A Cancer Patient’s View of Healthcare and the ACA, Charles Freeman
“I’m sorry to have to tell you that you have cancer of the rectum.” I firmly believe now that such news should be delayed at least until a patient is a little less foggy from anesthesia. It was a good thing my wife was with me on that Friday, August 24, 2012; I didn’t hear another word the gastroenterologist said. My mind was too busy with a confused and panicky welter of jumbled thoughts. Cancer?? How did that happen? Cancer of the WHAT?? Is this going to kill me? I’m going to have to drop out of school, aren’t I? Really, cancer of the WHAT?? At least I have health insurance. For now. Continue Reading
Just Not Enough: A Physician’s Perspective on Justice and the ACA, Jim Wright
Justice or Freedom? In the debate over healthcare reform, it comes down to this: do we aim for a system based on justice – equal access through redistribution of funds and regulation of services – or do we continue to favor freedom – giving patients and doctors unfettered access to an array of diagnostic and treatment options, financed through various private companies? Our dilemma is uniquely American; we’re one of the wealthiest countries in the world, and yet we’re almost the only industrialized country that does not provide healthcare for its citizens. Continue Reading
Healing Miracles: A Pastor’s Perspective, Rev. Jenny McDevitt
I spend a lot of time praying for healing. As a pastor of pastoral care, that’s a significant part of my job. When the news is the worst, I pray for the best. Sometimes we get the miracle story and the enormous, inconsiderate cancer cells disappear, or the transplanted heart starts beating, or the emergency surgery reverses what seemed be certain paralysis. Sometimes it happens, and we shout with joy and hold each other as we weep in amazement. Far more often, however, the story ends differently. Continue Reading
Is Healthcare a Human Right?: An Ethicist’s Perspective, Chris Iosso
Healthcare is a very good thing for governments to provide, whether or not it is a human right, because it is certainly a basic human good and is necessary for human flourishing. The social provision of healthcare can be considered part of the natural state of human beings because for our species, culture – including the growth of medical knowledge – is a natural development. Medicine alone does not create health but is related to good nutrition, exercise, and a host of social and environmental factors. Good medical care reflects enormous social investment over time in science, technology, and treatment experience. European nations, Japan, and many other societies have long provided varying levels of social insurance for all citizens that include healthcare. Continue Reading
How I Became an Advocate for People Living with HIV/AIDS, Deborah Wade
When our family moved from Lexington, KY, to Anniston, AL, to follow my husband’s call to become the pastor of a Presbyterian church, I had plans to stay at home with our two-year-old son. Little did I know that God would soon call me, too, into a new and unfamiliar land. It began with a phone call. One minute, I was sitting at the kitchen table writing a letter to my mom, the next minute an unfamiliar voice was asking me if I might consider applying for the job of Executive Director for a newly opened out-patient medical clinic for patients with AIDS. Continue Reading
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