Connect
MJA
MJA

On western health care

Damien W Morgan
Med J Aust 2008; 188 (5): . || doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2008.tb01618.x
Published online: 3 March 2008

In an age of increasing disparity between the health systems of rich and poor countries, Suffering and healing in America offers an analysis of how America’s health system can learn from the achievements of those in more poorly funded settings. The author argues that health care in America risks the charge of hubris as it increasingly fails to address the needs of poorer members of the community. Furthermore, Western medicine has so raised the expectations of cure that it has contributed to the loss of capacity to cope with suffering when cure is not possible. He discusses the comparative notions of cure and healing and the evolving role of family medicine within the health care system.


  • Macfarlane Burnet Institute


Correspondence: 

Author

remove_circle_outline Delete Author
add_circle_outline Add Author

Comment
Do you have any competing interests to declare? *

I/we agree to assign copyright to the Medical Journal of Australia and agree to the Conditions of publication *
I/we agree to the Terms of use of the Medical Journal of Australia *
Email me when people comment on this article

Online responses are no longer available. Please refer to our instructions for authors page for more information.