I read lots of blogs. I should get out more. I should be sleeping.
One of the blogs I used to read was Cancerbaby. She died last week and I cried and cried. Amanda posted this last week looking for money to help Chester who is dying and can’t afford palliative care and who is still being assessed for eligibility for benefits, in America. What kind of a country let’s people die without pain relief? The same country that produces people like Amanda and Cancerbaby, I suppose, eloquent, passionate and angry.
My friend the heart surgeon has worked in American hospitals for many years and she said to me that because the primary care system there is so inadequate, when (poor) people get to hospital they are usually a lot sicker than they would be in Ireland. Mind you, she also said that once they get into hospital the care and equipment tends to be much better than it is in Ireland. For all the faults of the Irish medical system (where people get to die on trolleys in nurses tea stations, so dying with dignity is out), I don’t think that what’s happening to Chester would ever happen in Ireland.
I was talking to my husband about this and he said “yes, apparently, has the highest rate of infant mortality in the developed worldâ€. All this can’t be right in one of the richest countries in the world, it just can’t.
True, true, and true. This is a great place to be rich and a terrible place to be poor. Compared to most of Europe our social services are non-existent, and healthcare is one of the worst examples. It’s part of the mentality though – those who are not born priviledged are expected to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps, validating the American Dream and giving the rest of us something (more) to feel sanctimonious about. The good outweighs the bad though, honestly it does.
It’s true, and it makes me sick to my stomach. Thinking about the disadvantaged people displaced by Katrina puts me in the same place. The richest country on the planet and we can’t take care of our own people? Worse, our government doesn’t even try. Mr. Bush should be talking about Katrina recovery every single day, and instead he’s trying to justify looking at phone records of ordinary Americans (mine too, probably, after posting this). I lived in Sweden for a few years and while i’m not sold on their social system, at least there’s the understanding that everyone DESERVES good care.
Hello B. Waffle :o) I have been lax with my blog travels, went to rectify it and saw you had moved, so I popped by to say hello.
I read this post and it is truly sad, I may complain about the NHS occasionally but I’m still glad it’s there!
By the way I have no idea what that emoticon is, I think it’s ‘surprise’ but it’s not supposed to be there so sorry bout that!
Yes.
Yes, and it’s a shame, but it is slightly possible that the statistics are a little bit skewed by what I assume to be our comparatively much larger population.
I know Beth. Why is it almost always true that something unpleasant is the flip side of something good? I find, that the American bootstrap thing is all very impressive but, alas the “if you’re down it’s you’re own fault” thing is just insane.
Kristin, is it just the people I read or are all American bloggers proper democrats? Yay for you.
Diva, I think that the NHS is probably one of the best services around. Fancy that.
Heather, I’d say the Swiss healthcare system is a wonder to behold.
Clara, yes, I know, lies, damned lies and statistics but still depressing stuff…