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Health
News Headlines
Perspectives
1. Doctors
Go on 'Strike' and Death Rates Plummet
Death
rates in Israel have dropped considerably since physicians
in public hospitals implemented a program of sanctions
three months ago, according to a survey of burial societies.
The Israel Medical Association (IMA) began the action in
March to protest against the government's proposed imposition
of a new four-year wage contract for doctors. Since then,
hundreds of thousands of visits to outpatient clinics have
been canceled or postponed along with tens of thousands
of elective operations.
Emergency
rooms, dialysis units, oncology departments, obstetric
and neonatal departments, and other vital facilities
have been working normally during the action. The Jerusalem
Post surveyed non-profit burial societies, which perform
funerals for the vast majority of Israelis, and found
that the number of funerals has fallen drastically. According
to one funeral parlor manager the same thing occurred
in 1983, during a similar action by the IMA, which lasted
4 and a half months.
The
only area of Israel which was found to not have a reduction
in its death rate was the city of Netanya. It also just
so happens that all of the doctors at the only hospital
in this city have "no-strike" clauses in their contracts
and are therefore unaffected by the action.
British
Medical Journal 2000;320:1561
2. Blunders
By Doctors Kill 40,000 people a Year In Britain
By
Lois Rogers
MEDICAL
error is the third most frequent cause of death in Britain
after cancer and heart disease, killing up to 40,000 people
a year - about four times more die from all other types
of accidents. Provisional research figures on hospital
mistakes show that a further 280,000 people suffer from
non-fatal drug-prescribing errors, overdoses and infections.
The victims spend an average of six extra days recovering
in hospital, at an annual cost of £730m in England
alone.
A
pilot study investigating the issue - the first attempt
to measure the problem in Britain - shows that one in
14 patients suffers some kind of adverse event such as
diagnostic error, operation mistake or drug reaction.
Charles Vincent, head of the clinical risk unit at University
College London, who is leading the study, has pioneered
efforts to examine the extent of clinical errors in Britain.
His team has so far concentrated on two London hospitals.
The first data from one hospital showed that 32 out of
480 patients in four different departments were victims
of hospital mistakes. Vincent's estimate of 40,000 deaths
comes from studies showing that 3-4% of patients in the
developed world suffers some kind of harm in hospital.
For 70% of them, the resulting disability is short-lived,
but 14% subsequently die. "It is a substantial problem," Vincent
said. "There is a need to find out the true extent of
error, what kind of things are going wrong and the cost." He
believes the death rate may be even higher than indicated
by the preliminary figures. Britain's
death rate is comparable to that in America, where recommendations
in a report produced by the Kellogg Foundation three
weeks ago are likely to result in the creation of a new
federal agency to protect patients from medical error.
The
report drew on studies that examined the records of 30,195
patients and found a 3.7% error rate. Of those injured,
14% died. Researchers concluded that 70% of the errors
- and 155,000 deaths - were avoidable. Department of
Health officials are now examining a proposal for a £1.2m
three-year national study of 20 hospitals and 10,000
medical records to establish exactly how these avoidable
deaths occur and how to prevent them. Comments While
we need to be careful not to create an adversarial relationship
to Western Medical Doctors, this report does remind us
that we need to investigate alternatives very carefully
before submitting to care of a hospital. If we do need
to go, it is essential to have an advocate go with you
to look out for your welfare. Sometimes it is as simple
as making sure that you are actually receiving what your
doctor prescribed.
3. Germ
Theory of Disease Is One of The False Foundations
of Modern Medicine by Dr. Joyce Marshall
Pasteur
realizes mistake!
Around 1880, Pasteur himself admitted his mistake regarding the "Germ Theory
of Infectious Disease." Pasteur finally realized that microbial species can
undergo many transformations. These facts were not consistent with his germ
theory and destroyed its very basis. It is overlooked by modern medicine that
Pasteur changed his theory. Pasteur admitted that germs were "ordinarily kept
within bounds by natural laws, but when conditions change, when its virulence
is exalted, when its host is enfeebled, the germ is able to invade the territory
which was previously barred it." This is the premise that a healthy body is
resistant and not susceptible to disease. With the advent of Pasteur's mysterious
germ, medicine cloaked itself under the guise of "science" and ever since has
succeeded in keeping the public ignorant of the true nature of disease. Yet
upon a theory so constantly at fault when thoroughly sifted there has been
erected a whole system of inoculation. Had it not been for the sale of sera
and vaccines, nowadays grown to such vast proportions, Pasteur's germ theory
of disease would have collapsed into obscurity. Thus, it can hardly be denied
that Pasteur committed an offense in dragging medical science down to a commercial
level.
Not
many people realize that germs, viruses and bacteria
are the result, not the cause, of disease. Bacteria have
an important role to perform in the vital process of
healing. Germs take part in virtually all disease phenomena
that require the disintegration of refuse and toxic matter
within the body that the system is endeavoring to remove.
They act as scavengers in cleaning up the affected area
of toxic saturation. As soon as their role is complete,
their numbers decline. For this reason, bacteria are
associated with disease processes but are not its cause,
for bacteria no more cause disease than flies cause garbage.
Comments: The germ theory is definitely a two edged sword. One
cannot deny that many of the drugs developed out of that
theory has saved lives. Unfortunately, it has also cost
lives. One of the main problems is that the theory is
limited in its understanding of the dynamics of disease.
It does not take enough (if at all) into account the
individual manifesting the disease. The medical system
as we know it today has its strengths in treating acute
conditions. Its weakness is in treating chronic conditions,
which is the strength of Chinese Medicine.
4. Prescriptions
Given To 75% of Patients Visiting Doctors and One
in Five Have Side Effects.
Three
out of four patients who visit the doctor end up leaving
the office with a drug prescription in their hand. How many
of these patients suffer side effects from their drugs?
According to a recent study, almost one in five. Yet most
of these are never recorded in patients' medical records,
despite the anxiety and discomfort they cause. Clearly,
some disconnect in patient-physician communication exists,
and that gap needs to be bridged. The drugs that most often
caused complications were antibiotics, antidepressants,
and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents. The most frequently
reported problems were gastrointestinal symptoms, sleep
problems, fatigue, and mood changes. Physicians often take
these types of reactions for granted in the course of medical
therapy. However, it is important to realize that these
events are not minor to patients; physicians may underestimate
the impact of these events on patient satisfaction, healthcare
utilization, and quality of life.
Patients
who reported drug complications were significantly less
satisfied with their overall quality of care, especially
if their doctors had failed to discuss potential side
effects with them. Half of the patients who reported
drug complications said that they had experienced worry
or discomfort, and about half sought medical attention
for these complications. In addition, over a third reported
that the problem had interfered with work, leisure, or
activities of daily living. In 20% of patients, drug
complications lasted more than 3 months. The researchers
point out that many doctors think that discussing side
effects with their patients makes them more likely to
occur. But patients whose doctors didn't talk about possible
drug-related problems were more likely to report complications,
not less, as well as being significantly less satisfied
with their care. Patients who know in advance about potential
side effects may handle them better or have less concern
about them. Therefore, improving patient education about
side effects is a promising intervention that could reduce
patient-reported drug complications.
Journal
of General Internal Medicine 2000;15:149-154
5. On
May 10, 1999, U.S. News and World Report reported in
its cover story "The Battle of the Bugs" that
common bacteria are building resistance to most of the
antibiotics on the market. Research into new drugs has
languished, and the public-health system is faltering.
Scientists are scrambling to come up with new plans.
Common bacteria are now so resistant to antibiotics that
they can kill. Up to 40% of pneumococcal infections have
become RESISTANT to a variety of antibiotics. Doctors
are resorting to increasingly powerful drugs. In 1980,
876,000 prescriptions for cephalosporins were recorded
for the treatment of acute otitis media. By 1992, the
number had jumped to nearly 7 million, a 687 percent
increase. In 1999, 30 million prescriptions will be written
to treat an estimated 10 million cases of acute otitis
media in children.
Comments: In
Chinese medicine the idea that a germ or other single
entity caused disease was never Really discussed or
presented as a theory. The Chinese diagnostic system
is based on thousands of years of observation resulting
in an empirical and practical understanding of the
patterns involved in disease. One reason for this approach
is that the Chinese have always respected their past
scholars and sages. They took and built on the experience
of history. Each era added to and developed the past
theories and practices. Over time, what worked was
integrated into practice and what did not work was
let go. Another reason is that science did not develop
along the same lines as in the west. The Chinese were
more interested in "How" rather than "Why". What the
Chinese doctors understood quite early on is that illness
can be considered as an imbalance between the body,
mind and/or spirit. A healthy body and mind can withstand
a range of conditions produced by the external forces
of nature. In cases where one succumbs to those forces,
a health practitioner is called on to help restore
that balance. This can be accomplished with the administration
of herbs, nutrition or counseling a change of life
style.
In
fact, a practitioner of Chinese Medicine may recommend
one or more of the following: meditation, Tai Chi, Chi
Kung, acupuncture, herbs. A doctor trained in Chinese
Medicine looks for patterns of disharmony. He/she obtains
the information necessary for a diagnosis by questioning,
looking at the tongue and feeling the pulses. The condition
is described in an energetic language, one that often
reflects the way the illness is manifesting. For example,
one might be told that they have contracted a "External
Wind Heat Evil". Bizarre as this may sound to a western
ear; it corresponds very closely with typical cold or
flu symptoms. Wind relates to the sudden display of symptoms
(like a gust of wind). Heat relates to fever and sore
throat. External indicates that the condition is not
due to an internal organ problem, but one that originated
outside the body. Herb formulas are unique in that they
usually treat a broad spectrum of conditions. From a
western viewpoint, the herbs often display very pronounced
antimicrobial activity. A well-constructed herb formula
can often treat virus and bacterial conditions with great
effectiveness. A western antibiotic can be considered
as a very strong herb, which is very singular in its
action. Sometimes it is exactly what is needed and can
produce almost miraculous results. Other times it produces
more problems with side effects than beneficial effects.
One of the main difficulties is that a drug is not given
with other "herbs" to balance its overly strong action.
This may result in one or more imbalances developing
in the body. An experienced herbalist however, can prescribe
a formula to take along with antibiotics or other drugs
to help reduce its side effects. In some cases however,
the side effects of a drug are too strong to counter.
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