Regular readers of Brownstone Journal have been graced with insight provided by many authors of diverse backgrounds and experiences. As a physician, I have found those authored by Dr. Joseph Varon to be exceptionally helpful in their insight into the state of medicine today. In particular, his essay, “When Physicians are Replaced With a Protocol,” struck a chord with me.
Perhaps it was my conscience, as I probably bear some responsibility for furthering this viewpoint, at least on a local level. You see, I once was a True Believer. It was plausible. It seemed so believable, so “scientific,” so simple. But it was a vicious hoax that, I am ashamed to say, took me in. Let me tell the story:
In the early 1990’s, medicine was under siege. The cost was rising at a steep rate, and some people saw an opportunity. Rather than looking at the rapid corporatization of healthcare and the proliferation of administrative costs, it was easy to shift the blame to the “providers. We were no longer “physicians,” but providers of a service. In truth, that is what we had become. The Health Equation had been shifted, whether intentionally or by accident. Just a few years before, physicians had directed patients to hospitals. Now, some bright businessperson, probably from The Wharton School or other such academic Ivory Tower, had seen the profit if the hospitals (or other corporate entities like insurance companies or A COMBINATION OF THE TWO) directed the patients to the physicians. It was like some financial martial arts reversal move…A perfect Sumi Gaeshi.
Hellbound and Down 