Modern Medical Failures

I know this doesn’t sound very paranormal (it’s not, by the way, but it does tie into metaphysical healing in a very personal way), and I’m not sure how this is going to come out… It may end up being more of a rant than anything, but it’s something that’s been on my mind for a long time, and I think it’s about time someone actually has the guts to call the medical community on the carpet for what they’ve done to themselves, and to us, as a society.

First, let me just say, I wasn’t raised in the days of the doctor who made house calls.  I didn’t grow up in the time when a doctor knew his/her patient by more than just a chart.  At least, not this lifetime.  But I do have vague memories – impressions, really – of such a time.  And I feel a soul-deep yearning for those days, when doctors actually cared, when they listened to their patients with understanding, and the knowledge that the patient, more than anyone, knew when something was wrong.  They (the patient) just might not know what.

I find it a failing in our modern society that doctors are trained to not be human beings, anymore.  They’re trained to see patients not as human beings, but as statistics and insurance forms.  You can’t get treated at any doctor’s office until the appropriate payment situation is worked out, and all the appropriate forms are filled out.  Then, you might just be lucky enough (in some dream world), that the doctor will actually read said forms, beyond any former diagnoses or medications some other doctor has given you.

I find it appalling that a patient who comes to the doctor and says “I don’t feel well” but can’t give the doctor a symptom they can look at under their microscope, or can’t diagnose in under five minutes, is immediately categorized and dismissed.

I find it deplorable that a patient who displays even the slightest angle toward being overweight is automatically labeled as “Oh, you’ll feel better if you just lose weight.”  And then instantly dismissed.

Why do I mention all of this?  Because the human body is more than a collection of just tissue and bone.  There are feelings.  There is inner, innate knowledge that occurs to us – insights that only the person to whom the body belongs are privy to.  And by dismissing a patient out of hand because a doctor doesn’t have time or isn’t interested, goes against the very oath they swear to uphold – the oath to first do no harm.  The sheer arrogance of the medical profession that allows them to dismiss a patient out-of-hand flies in the face of the spirit of science itself.  Often, a person’s spiritual or emotional wellness is vitally linked to their physical state – even medicine suggests that this connection exists, when they explain that depression has physical symptoms.  What does it treat to hand over a prescription, when what is needed is to understand that what may be happening is not that easily cured?

This is where I believe a blend of old-fashioned medical ethics (that caring attitude), modern medical testing, and Nature’s own cures come into focus.  Instead of dismissing, medical professionals should be taught to embrace – their relationship with the patient and their understanding and acceptance of an attitude of “whatever works” in order to reach a cure or solution, as well as the advanced medical treatments and tests that are available today.  Science only serves humanity if it retains its humility, its understanding that it does not know everything there is to know in this world, or this universe, and that Nature is far wiser than we will ever be.  Parapsychology has embraced this understanding, this awareness that there is something greater at work than science has answers for at this time.  Now it’s time for medicine to step up to the plate – believe, Horatio.  Because the life it saves might just be one you love.

Anyway, this was something I felt the need to get off my chest, as it’s been weighing on me for some time.  Take it for what you will… If it inspires one person to grow, it was worth it.

~ by esthermitchell on June 17, 2009.