I'm a nurse. I've worked in hospitals and ambulatory settings for 20 years. While I agree that better hand-washing is effective (and regularly promoted), not all deaths are the fault of the health system. People get super infections (like MRSA) from anywhere: schools, jobs, bathrooms, restaurants, etc. Hospitals are full of people with infections that are cured and go home. Policies to prevent infections are subject to human error - and they try really hard to diminish the instances of those. Nothing is perfect.

You want to talk about preventable deaths? How about drinking and driving? How about smoking? How about obesity? Heart disease, lung disease, cancer, death by murder, su...

I'm a nurse. I've worked in hospitals and ambulatory settings for 20 years. While I agree that better hand-washing is effective (and regularly promoted), not all deaths are the fault of the health system. People get super infections (like MRSA) from anywhere: schools, jobs, bathrooms, restaurants, etc. Hospitals are full of people with infections that are cured and go home. Policies to prevent infections are subject to human error - and they try really hard to diminish the instances of those. Nothing is perfect.

You want to talk about preventable deaths? How about drinking and driving? How about smoking? How about obesity? Heart disease, lung disease, cancer, death by murder, suicide, etc....? When you stack up the number of people who die because of a noscomial (hospital acquired) infection against all the preventable deaths EVERY DAY...it's just a small fraction. Even a fraction is too much, but in reality, there are bigger problems and having the government in charge of health care decisions is not the answer.

Of course not all deaths that occur in hospitals are due to negligence but even one or two preventable mortality is a horrendous state of affairs.

We all come to the table with different experiences and I'm sure there’s a hospital (possibly the one you work in) who cares more about their patients than the green in their pockets but that’s the exception not the norm.

The health care industry is a business and like any other business it needs competition and oversight to maintain quality. It seems though, that this is not the case in the USA and it has gone unchecked for so long it gets, literally, away with murder. Just like any other profession would, who has had no one to answer to....

Of course not all deaths that occur in hospitals are due to negligence but even one or two preventable mortality is a horrendous state of affairs.

We all come to the table with different experiences and I'm sure there’s a hospital (possibly the one you work in) who cares more about their patients than the green in their pockets but that’s the exception not the norm.

The health care industry is a business and like any other business it needs competition and oversight to maintain quality. It seems though, that this is not the case in the USA and it has gone unchecked for so long it gets, literally, away with murder. Just like any other profession would, who has had no one to answer to.

It’s hard to believe that health care reform has not been a priority for our sitting Presidents and Congress, worse than that it’s been fought against tooth and nail.

Because of this, health care has grown to become a necessary evil in our lives and since every one of us has had to or will have to, at some time or other, rely on its expertise, we put up with the lethality plus the relentless financial burden it causes us. And that is an intolerable disgrace.

Maybe we view the term "Health Care" to broadly. I got from your clip and comments that you use it to mean the actual practices of infection control, disease prevention and the healing arts.

Health Care, to the politicians is the insurance companies, the administrative constraints or excesses, etc.

First - medicine is an art not a science-- never forget that. We learn more every day, but 200 years ago, handwashing was considered HARMFUL. Bathing was done once or twice a YEAR and then only under duress. People died within 24 hours of diarrhea. Doctors amputated anything more than a simple laceration. We've come a LONG WAY. But, there is more to learn every day.

Second - Most hos...

Maybe we view the term "Health Care" to broadly. I got from your clip and comments that you use it to mean the actual practices of infection control, disease prevention and the healing arts.

Health Care, to the politicians is the insurance companies, the administrative constraints or excesses, etc.

First - medicine is an art not a science-- never forget that. We learn more every day, but 200 years ago, handwashing was considered HARMFUL. Bathing was done once or twice a YEAR and then only under duress. People died within 24 hours of diarrhea. Doctors amputated anything more than a simple laceration. We've come a LONG WAY. But, there is more to learn every day.

Second - Most hospitals are non-profit, regulated six ways from Sunday by the Joint Commission, Medicare, Medicaid, various other accrediting agencies and they all change their rules willy-nilly. Insurance companies are constrained by out of control lawyers and courts that no nothing about medicine and everything about money. The premiums charged are so high because people will litigate anything. Are they still out of line? Yes. I also believe that people should be covered no matter where they go, where they live and for any condition they have. Do I believe that health care coverage is a right? No. Should it be affordable? Yes. Do I want nationalized/socialized health care? NO. That's taking the lawyers out of the courts and putting them on the front end of health care decisions....not a good idea.

Doctors, nurses, medics, hospitals all have to answer for mistakes. But unlike 200 years ago, we shouldn't be burning them at the stake as witches.

Your (conservative view) comeback leaves a lot to be desired. Let's start with Non-profit hospitals.

Nonprofit hospitals, originally set up to serve the poor, have transformed themselves into profit machines. At some nonprofits, the good times are reflected in new facilities and rich exec. pay. Today, 60% of the 3,400 hospitals in the U.S. are nonprofit. 23% are for-profit, and 17% are run by counties, states or the federal government. Many nonprofit hospitals have used their growing surpluses to pay for expensive new facilities and equipment, to reward their execs with large pay pkges and to increase their treasure chests.

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Now on to your (old fashion view) Medicine is an...

Your (conservative view) comeback leaves a lot to be desired. Let's start with Non-profit hospitals.

Nonprofit hospitals, originally set up to serve the poor, have transformed themselves into profit machines. At some nonprofits, the good times are reflected in new facilities and rich exec. pay. Today, 60% of the 3,400 hospitals in the U.S. are nonprofit. 23% are for-profit, and 17% are run by counties, states or the federal government. Many nonprofit hospitals have used their growing surpluses to pay for expensive new facilities and equipment, to reward their execs with large pay pkges and to increase their treasure chests.

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Now on to your (old fashion view) Medicine is an art not a science...

Ancient medicine was the mother of science and played a large role in the integration of early culture. Ancient medicine across the globe was different due to vivid cultures and civilizations, an Integration of cultures across many geographical boundaries, races and ethnic groups. Due to this, medicine has undergone wide changes, so much so that its definition itself has metamorphosed many times. What, then, is medicine? Many people think it's a science, others think it's an art. Conclusion - Medicine is both an art and a science. Both are interdependent and inseparable, just like two sides of a coin. Interesting article you should read - click here

As far as your (conservative) view that health care is not a right. I strongly disagree with you. The founding fathers forgot to specifically use wording which would have helped all Caring People who Cared About Their Fellow Man, view health care as a right.They did say, we ALL have unalienable rights, to Life, Liberty and pursuit of Happiness. I ask you.. How can you have life without health? (the cruel and unusual punishment clause in the 8th Amend is interpr

First, I'd like to point out that out of 139 views, you got two pops. And yeah, I'm a conservative - just like about 50% of the population.

Second, everyone has an opinion, and while I disagree with you and you disagree with me, we can both be confident that medicine, whether art or science, is ever evolving and likely to be as unrecognizable to us in 100 years as it was to our ancestors of only 100 years ago.

Prisoners are afforded health care. Did you also know that a prisoner with a life sentence is not afforded the right to be a DNR? He or she must be subjected to every life-saving procedure no matter their wishes because otherwise it would be a 'death sentence'. So rather than hea...

First, I'd like to point out that out of 139 views, you got two pops. And yeah, I'm a conservative - just like about 50% of the population.

Second, everyone has an opinion, and while I disagree with you and you disagree with me, we can both be confident that medicine, whether art or science, is ever evolving and likely to be as unrecognizable to us in 100 years as it was to our ancestors of only 100 years ago.

Prisoners are afforded health care. Did you also know that a prisoner with a life sentence is not afforded the right to be a DNR? He or she must be subjected to every life-saving procedure no matter their wishes because otherwise it would be a 'death sentence'. So rather than health care being a 'right' it can actually be the prolongation of an intolerable existence. You and I have the right to decide how we wish to deal with the end of our lives - prisoners don't.

As for caring even though I'm a conservative:
I care for patients whether they have insurance or not, whether they are illegals or not, whether they are black, white, brown or yellow. I care for people from cradle to grave. The average person - no matter their politics - cares for their fellow man without the government forcing them. They have sympathy, empathy and will contribute generously when needed. Again, without the government making laws and granting 'rights' not recognized by our constitution or laws for more than 230 years.

People DO need insurance that they can afford. Doctors need to be free of outrageous malpractice rates. Pre-existing conditions shouldn't be an issue, as age, race, sex shouldn't be either. These are points of law that need to be addressed - tort reform. We need to start with the basics first.

Be careful how you label people - you risk being thought of as narrow minded.

(First, I'd like to point out that out of 139 views, you got two pops. And yeah, I'm a conservative - just like about 50% of the population.
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thinkingblue: Oh that's quite funny: Maybe you use clipmarks to get POPS but I'm sorry, I don't. I guess you're trying to tell me that since I didn't get the coveted pops the article I posted is of little value. All I can say to that is, Oh Well.
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So rather than health care being a 'right' it can actually be the prolongation of an intolerable existence. You and I have the right to decide how we wish to deal with the end of our lives - prisoners don't.
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thinkingblue: You sure do go to great lengths to prov...

(First, I'd like to point out that out of 139 views, you got two pops. And yeah, I'm a conservative - just like about 50% of the population.
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thinkingblue: Oh that's quite funny: Maybe you use clipmarks to get POPS but I'm sorry, I don't. I guess you're trying to tell me that since I didn't get the coveted pops the article I posted is of little value. All I can say to that is, Oh Well.
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So rather than health care being a 'right' it can actually be the prolongation of an intolerable existence. You and I have the right to decide how we wish to deal with the end of our lives - prisoners don't.
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thinkingblue: You sure do go to great lengths to prove that Health Care in this country should NOT be a RIGHT. Here again, that’s your opinion and also again... Oh Well, (but I hope our government will heed the urgency and make it a RIGHT, with some sort of public option {preferably Single Payer}, before more people die because they can't afford the greedy insurance company's premiums).
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Be careful how you label people - you risk being thought of as narrow minded.

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thinkingblue: Guess what? I don’t really care if conservative people wish to call me narrow minded. For pity’s sake, most conservatives watch Fox news and listen to Rush Limbaugh, so you think I really care how they view me? Not on your life!

PS: Here's a little tidbit you might enjoy, NO correlation to you intended.

Nurse Ratched desires order, and she wants complete power, so she manipulates her patients and the staff to fulfill her desires. Nurse Ratched, is able to maneuver things so that most situations fit her expectations. Though she smiles a lot and talks sweetly, she’s definitely not a kind or charming woman. She is, however, a woman with strong will and a fanaticism for control. She pursues power with intensity and is very successful at getting people to do what she wants.