Change your behaviour or you won't get medical help!

[Solly]

OK, Labour didn't quite say this but they should have.

Patients could have to sign up to healthier lifestyles under new plans being considered by the Labour Party.

Written contracts would ensure a certain standard of treatment in return for people following doctors' advice and attending appointments

What's wrong with expecting patients to take a bit of care over their own bodies for once. It's no use turning up to a doctor at 45 having ate yourself into a heart attack. Responsibility needs to be taken earlier for one's health. If doctor's guidelines are not adhered to, certain treatments should be restricted.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2958148.stm

[Sava]

One stipulation I would add to a Universal Health Care system is that one needs to follow doctor's advice when it comes to lifestyle changes. Although I believe health care should be free, a person needs to take responsibility when a lifestyle choice is the cause of your health woes.

[MichaeltheGreat]

Lifestyle is the cause of the vast majority of healthcare woes in the developed world until you get to fairly advanced age. Traumatic injuries and non-sexually transmitted serious infectious disease is pretty rare.

[Sava]

whAT aBOUT the SARS

[Solly]

Lifestyle is the cause of the vast majority of healthcare woes in the developed world until you get to fairly advanced age.

The main ones can be easily pin-pointed - obesity (except where there is a diagnosed thyroid problem) and smoking are the main two that can be easily solved by enacting a responsibility to yourself.

Alcoholism is the next that is preventable but wouldn't be quite as easy to give up as smoking or excess food.

Sports injuries, DIY accidents are related to lifestyle but should not be a means to refuse treatment.

[Sava]

There are genetic pre-dispositions (sp?)... mind you

[MikeH]

Originally posted by Boddington's Alcoholism is the next that is preventable but wouldn't be quite as easy to give up as smoking or excess food.

Technically nicotine is more addictive than alcohol, or even heroin. Many recovered heroin addicts can't quit smoking.

I think patients should be encouraged to take care of their bodies. I think this contract thing is a lot of additional paperwork for the doctors though. As they are under massive time pressure already I'd prefer them to spend more time with patients.

Just as a point of interest. Should the doctor deny treatment to a skateboarder who has broken their leg/arm several time and they've warned that if they go out again and fall it could damage them?

[Sava]

Just as a point of interest. Should the doctor deny treatment to a skateboarder who has broken their leg/arm several time and they've warned that if they go out again and fall it could damage them?

No. I believe that sports and activities are legitimate actions. When referring to lifestyle choices, I mean substance abuse and diet.

[MikeH]

What's the difference? If skateboarding makes someone feel good and eating a chocolate bar makes someone else feel good why should one be punished for the latter but not the former?

[Solly]

Risk and expectation.

The chocolate-eater knows what he/she is doing to her body. The skateboarder who breaks his/her arm does so by accident.

[Starchild]

But the skateboarder knows that his activities carries a much higher chance of injury than other activities. Just like the chocolate eater knows he has a higher chance of obesity than a spinach eater.

[Sava]

Originally posted by MikeH
What's the difference? If skateboarding makes someone feel good and eating a chocolate bar makes someone else feel good why should one be punished for the latter but not the former?

I'm not talking about eating a chocolate bar. I'm talking about eating 10 a day for 10 years and becoming an utter fat-ass. It isn't reasonable to expect national health care to support a bad diet. But, the same health care system should treat the fat if they make an effort to stop their lifestyle choice. The same with substance abusers.

Skateboarding is a physical activity, and different from substance abuse. Thus, treated differently. It's a hobby, arguably a sport, and people make their living off of it. The same with baseball, football (real football, not soccer), basketball, etc. When eating cheeseburgers and candy bars becomes a sport, a job, or a socially accepted physical activity, then you can use that argument.

And this isn't a question of punishment. It's a question of refusal to change behavior that the rest of the country is being forced to pay for.

[Sava]

Originally posted by Starchild
But the skateboarder knows that his activities carries a much higher chance of injury than other activities. Just like the chocolate eater knows he has a higher chance of obesity than a spinach eater.

The knowledge of risk is irrelevant. In terms of risk, eating isn't a question of risk. If you eat 50 candy bars a day, you will become fat. If you drink 20 beers in one sitting, you will get drunk. Just because you skateboard, doesn't automatically mean you will suffer injury.

[Kidlicious]

Originally posted by MikeH
Just as a point of interest. Should the doctor deny treatment to a skateboarder who has broken their leg/arm several time and they've warned that if they go out again and fall it could damage them?

You guys lost track of the original context. The key is that a doctor has warned the patient of dangerous activity. In this context there is no diference between the scateboarder and the fat guy. The scateboarder is obviously scating in a way that is dangerous to his health. Normal scateboarding is not so dangerous that someone would repeatedly get injured doing it. Also, eating chocolate bars does not make you fat, but if you are fat you shouldn't be eating chocolate bars.

[Soul Survivor]

unless you skateboard after eating 50 candy bars and drinking 20 beers