Really, I do hope the Hep C Trust get their data together, I’m sure some clear pictures of shall we say ;certain individuals’ may become apparent if it’s done properly?

I’ve been giving some thought to this subject – which I read you to mean the public naming and shaming of these ‘certain individuals’, as well as the praising of the helpful ones. No matter how I look at it, I think it is only going to be effective if people are prepared to give up their anonymity and put their names to the complaints that they have. Otherwise anybody could make up unsubstantiated tales of woe to smear somebody’s reputation. But as we all know, giving up one’s anonymity can be a hazardous path and not for everyone. Plus it opens you up to charges of libel and lawsuits.

So I’d have to say that anybody thinking about doing an ‘expose’ should be very clear about their goal and what it might involve to do it ‘properly’. Also about the possible consequences. I would never try to deter somebody with the courage to do it, but just say to go into it with your eyes open.

dt

Hi DT, did you know that this is how it works already in France? Well, not the mobile phone part, but pretty much all the rest.

French people have a little green card (“carte vitale”, which is like a bank card, that they hand to their Dr on each visit. This gives the Dr immediate access to their record. They use the same card to pay for their medical costs in a clinic or blood-test lab. About 40% of the cost of any treatment is paid by the government. The rest by private insurance. But the two systems are completely linked together, and most French people choose to pay for the extra insurance cover. This means that they just flash their little green card and everything is automatically covered… This also explains why in France there is a pharmacy on just about every street corner.

But the most amazing part (for us Brits) is that the clinic or laboratory sends the results to you, the patient, with the doctor or specialist in copy. So every French citizen can pull out a folder containing their own entire medical history…

Probably way too brilliantly simple for it to ever catch on in the UK?

I asked my French girlfriend how it could possibly be so easy? She told me the answer is simple. The French are world-experts in complaining about anything and everything that their government does for them…

Stockholm Syndrome is the only way I can find to explain giving Cameron a second term. With maybe some leeway for gerrymandering.

I think the protestant english speaking countries have a very heavy legacy of contempt for the body, and fear of its natural functions that I am sure is contributing to their dysfunctional health systems. Look at puritan America for the prime example.
There is a strong cultural resistance to allowing people to connect and maintain their own physical being…
Added to that the financial rewards of keeping that kind of control over people.

If people are able to manage their own health who knows where it will end. Maybe they will start to grasp the importance of protecting the health of the biosphere as well.