Healthcare as a Human Right
Due to its significance to society, health is a topic that unites many sectors and stakeholders. High-quality healthcare for the populace demands a lot of effort and money. To safeguard society from exploitation and to raise the standard of living of the populace, investments in the health sectors have continued to rise. However, there have been occasions where important stakeholders have fallen short of expectations as a result of broad generalizations that lead to bad laws. These assumptions include ones on the population's financial capacity. There are stakeholders who believe that all people can afford to pay for healthcare because of growth in economic parameters such as GDP and per capita income. This essay will discuss two books that include the theme of healthcare as a human right. Both Kidder and Ansell’s books cover the provision of healthcare services to the poor. Though the books are based on two different countries, one being developed and the other developing, there are clear similarities in the healthcare systems of these two countries. The contrasts presented by the two writers also offer valid insights on some important aspects of healthcare. This paper discusses how social, political and economic imbalances have overflown into the health sector. It will examine both the common aspects and disparities between the two settings described by the authors.
Doctors as Socially Aware Advocates
Both Kidder and Ansell bring out medics as individuals who are socially aware. At the beginning of Kidder’s book, he listens to a conversation between Captain Carrol and Paul Farmer. From this conversation, Kidder (2003) concludes that Farmer has more experience with Haitians that Carroll. Carroll who represents the American government which is present in the country to maintain peace in the country. At the time, Haiti has no powerful legitimate government in place, and the American forces form the most powerful authority that can alleviate the people’s problems at the time. However, Carroll is detached from the true situation on the ground. Dr. Farmer fails to convince Carroll on the seriousness of Haitians’ problems and has to leave. This does not discourage him from providing his services. Kidder (2003) notes that though Farmer understands that he cannot provide quality health services to the people alone, he does his best and sacrifices his comforts to ensure that people are well catered for. Ansell (2012) describes the facilities at Cook County Hospital. He describes his first encounter at the facility where the bathroom was so bad that he had to use one across the street. The medics understand the real conditions within the hospitals that the rest of the society, especially the middle and upper classes, do not know about. The management of the Cook County hospital is also unaware of the seriousness of the situation that it fired doctors who protested against the poor condition of the facility some years before Ansell came in.
The Dedication of Doctors
Social awareness of the doctors has made them dedicated to their job. Since other stakeholders are delinked from the problems that face the public, the doctors have to stand in and ensure that they do their best to preserve the heath of the people. Both books demonstrate that doctors are dedicated to their jobs and invest more energy and time than it is required. Kidder (2003) describes Farmer as a “big shot.” This term emanates from his vast experience in the medical sector and the academic credentials. Kidder (2003) notes that Farmer could have been more comfortable if he chose to research and remain isolated from patients like other doctors. Despite being one of the senior doctors at the facility, Farmer spends so much time than one would consider necessary attending to his patients. Doctor Ansell exhibits the same dedication towards his job. During his two decades at the Cook County hospital, he encountered devastating incidents such as the one described at the beginning of the book. He had to climb over the bathroom wall to administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation to a patient. The man was smoking cigar despite having been advised not to do so due to heart problems. This demonstrates that even the patient's in these facilities did not care about their wellbeing, and the doctor has to compensate for their negligence by working extra hard to keep them alive. However, Ansell’s (2012) book talks of the contrast where some medics have remained in the public hospitals because they enjoy the flaws within the public healthcare system. Being a caring doctor, Ansell also has to fill the gap created by irresponsible colleagues. The book states that public health facilities have all kinds of medics, with some caring and kind and others cruel, disengaged and corrupt.
Responsibility of All Society Members
The role of providing quality healthcare should be taken up by all the members of the society. Both books show that the administrators and other members of the society have disengaged from this responsibility. Kidder’s book brings out the ignorance of the authorities regarding the population’s health. Ansell (2012) describes how key stakeholders in the health sector have failed to respond to the needs of the people. Ansell (2012) uses the word "dumping" to describe a situation where private hospitals take poor patients to the Cook Country Hospitals. These patients cannot meet the cost of treatment at the private facilities. The management of these facilities understands that Cook County hospital does not have the facilities that can handle their emergency medical conditions but go ahead to take them to this facility. An editorial cartoon that appeared in the Chicago Sun-times showed people in a truck labeled "Private Hospitals" being dumped in a pit labeled "Cook County Hospital Emergency Room." This practice was rampant at the time when medical insurance had been introduced. Those who could not afford this medical insurance were turned away from private hospitals. Ansell (2012) notes that their research on the practice of dumping drew the attention of the federal government that formed a law against the act.
Contrast and Comparison
The systems described in both books do not allow dedicated people within the population to turn their good intentions into positive actions. Kidder’s (2003) describes how the American’s in Haiti concentrate on their economic interests and ignore the wellbeing of the people. The book critics the American policy. Kidder feels that it does not bring out the goodwill that drives the actions of most Americans. Captain Carroll has been charged with the responsibility of fighting off a militia that had taken over the country. The captain is a good man with positive intentions towards the Haitians. However, the system seems to be too corrupt and suppresses his good intentions to uphold the wellbeing of the Haitians. Carrol complains to Farmer that the orders issued by his seniors constrain him from arresting the militia’s leaders who were troubling the population. To dissociate with the system that is driven by economic interests, Farmer chooses to ignore the rules. He chooses to treat the people of Zanmi Lasante without charging them. Kidder (2003) notes that by dissociating from the system, Farmer is able to achieve what an average hospital in the US can with a smaller budget. The doctors who were arrested for protesting against the poor facilities in Cook County Hospital also became victims of the system that was tainted by economic and political interests.
Comparison and Value of Life
The two authors utilize comparison to help the reader understand the seriousness of the health issue. Kidder (2003) contrasts the situation in Haiti with that in the United States. His first chapter introduces the Haitian situation. In the second chapter, the main character returns to the US, and this gives the author a chance to describe the health situation in the US before returning to Haiti. Ansell (2012) describes the situation of public health facilities and contrasts it with that of the private ones. In both comparisons, another theme of the value of life versus cost-efficiency comes up. Dr. Farmer uses his own resources and help from donors to care for the population in poor parts of Haiti and Peru. Sometimes, he has to spend large amounts of money and time caring for a single patient. He doubts whether such actions are worth or whether he should instead devote these resources on handling multiple smaller cases. In this comparison, health systems in both the developing countries and the US are aligned to economic interests. Ansell’s comparison is that between the public health facilities and the private ones. Kidder seems to have only interacted with the improved facilities in the US. Ansell (2012) shows contrasts within one state: Chicago. He notes that the infiltration health insurance in the health sector has made the venture more lucrative for private investors. The private health facilities set up in Chicago are only interested in making money from the rich people.
Social Awareness and the Role of Doctors
Both books highlight the social awareness of the major characters: Paul Farmer and David Ansell. These are individuals who are dedicated to helping the society through provision of medical care. However, other stakeholders have failed to meet the responsibilities. Therefore, the individuals have to put in more effort to compensate fill the gap left by the other stakeholders.
References
Ansell, D. (2012) County: Life, death and politics at Chicago’s public hospital. Chicago Review Press.
Kidder, T. (2003) Mountains beyond mountains: healing the world: the quest of Dr. Paul Farmer. New York: Random House.
