Have you seen Michael Moore’s movie “SiCKO” yet? I recently did. Mr. Moore must be congratulated for his newsreel expose of two important issues in modern healthcare: universal coverage and access to care. It is particularly important for patients and the public in the United States to understand at a “gut level” the differences and similarities between our healthcare system and that available in other developed countries in the world. The issue will clearly be on the national stage during the next year, as the presidential campaigns and election processes unfold.
With tongue-in-cheek Mr. Moore leaves the viewer with a lasting impression of the serious deficiencies in US healthcare delivery, as well as the conflicts of interests and agendas between pharmaceutical companies, health insurance companies and the federal government’s regulatory agencies. One is led to believe that such may not be the case in other countries of the world. That may not necessarily be so.
My own quibble with this movie is that there is no effort to document the overall quality and safety of the healthcare delivered in other parts of the world. That is not to say that the US system is the gold standard. Instead, our results in such areas as perinatal care, infant mortality, immunizations and infectious disease rank us way down the list. The movie does touch on these points.
My point is that it is one thing to gain access to care. It is quite another to appreciate that once that care is received, it will be of consistent, appropriate, and high quality, and that it will be safe. The movie leaves one with the impression that healthcare in Canada, Great Britain, France and even Cuba is in some ways superior to that here in the United States. The point could be debated at many levels, but the key will be to assess overall quality and safety. In my opinion, appropriate metrics do not exist as yet to do so. Universal access to poor quality care or unsafe care does not promote health. Pardon the pun, but “Moore is not better”.
Irvin B. Krukenkamp, MD
www.DoctorK.org
Comments