week 5

I found the weeks readings truly insightful. Although public health is not necessarily a field I aspire to be a part of I find it very intriguing. The more I learn about public health the more I realize I hardly know anything at all. There seems to be so many complex chronic issues that just get masked to the public. After reading the article “The Value of Non-Profit Healthcare” I was amazed to read what a substantial role non-profits play in the hospital market. It addressed the fact that three fifths of all hospitals in the U.S. are non-profits, while only one fifth are for profit. All other hospitals here government owned. How did I not know this? In the article “Mergers of for-profit, non-profit hospitals: who does it help?” It was troubling to see that there has been a shift toward non-profit health care organizations being bought out by for-profit investors. There was a particular case of this in Detroit where a non-profit hospital, which provided lots of support to un-insured demographics of the community, was being taken over by another for-profit company. Helping the un-insured is something that a for-profit hospital simply has no interest in doing. There was mention of improvements such as massive funding for investment and debt reduction along with equipment improvements and development of a new children’s wing. This is in hope to bring insured patients back to the hospital. These improvements all seem to be very great things but I wonder if the group intending to buy the hospital has taken any time or consideration in accessing the community of which the hospital supports. I would assume that if there is currently a great deal of un-insured patients going to the hospital then this must not be the wealthiest of neighborhoods. This type of activity will surely reinforce current injustices in the health care system. It is saddening that so many times community involvement is harshly overlooked when it comes to these big mergers and acquisitions.

Health care seems to be ridden with these types of issues that are increasingly difficult to address due to the nature of the health care system. While reading the article concerning ADD in adults, I couldn’t help but think, “Oh great here’s another thing we have to watch out for, pharmaceutical companies.” The pharmaceutical industry can be pretty controversial. This article just reinforces that notion. They are almost as bad as the tobacco companies; at least in the way they market their product. In the book “Brave New World”, written by Aldous Huxley, there is intensive use of the drug called “soma” that allows for instant satisfaction or pleasure. I couldn’t help but thinking that is where our country is going with all these overprescribed people just trying to escape from the troubles of the world. I believe that ADD is real but it’s a real shame when adults try to convince their children and each other that there is something “wrong” or “different” about them. The person you become on Adderall or Strattera isn’t human or “normal”. You become a machine. Why can’t we all be as awesome as the Green Bay Packers and stay true to ourselves! No matter how out of the box or different that may be. It’s so great to hear about the Packers being a non-profit and all the amazing volunteer support they receive. Those are true fans. Maybe I will be a Packers fan too for the weekend J