If, like me, you’re used to a parliamentary system where the party with a majority in Parliament runs the government and, if it has a big enough majority, pushes through its manifesto commitments without too much difficulty, policy making in American can seem utterly chaotic. […]
Category: Guest writers
Ohad Oren on euthanasia, supermarket style
Debbie Purdy, a 45 year old woman with progressive multiple sclerosis, failed in her bid last month to be able to end her life when her excruciating symptoms become unbearable for her. When the time comes, she wants her husband to accompany her to Dignitas, a Swiss clinic, which will prescribe a lethal dose of barbiturates, […]
Sheila McLean: Whose decision is it, anyway?
The case of Hannah Jones has unsurprisingly provoked intense, and often emotional, debate. It is somehow counter-intuitive that a 13 year old should choose a path that will inevitably result in her death, when treatment is available. Equally, many have questioned whether or not someone so young should be allowed to make this kind of […]
Jeanelle de Gruchy on Obama and equality
Last week’s historic election of the United States’ first black president was an uplifting event that speaks of possibilities, to being able to trounce racism and collectively help shape a better world. As Oprah Winfrey declared: “Hope won tonight!” And of course this was a vote that rejected the advocates of social conservatism. Well, it […]
Matiram Pun: Obama wins – a pretty optimistic outlook for the world
Kenya’s people have shown an enthusiasm bordering on fanaticism over the US presidential election and declared a national holiday after Barack Obama’s win. But it was not only Kenya and the whole of Africa that showed an interest in the election. The whole world did, because Obama was the outsider’s choice. In Iran, Turkey, and […]
Tauseef Mehrali: Attack of the clipboards
I sat riveted through Kenneth Branagh’s perceptive portrayal of Ivanov in Chekhov’s eponymous play. Witnessing the desperate depression of the protagonist unfold I couldn’t help thinking how many points he would score on a Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), a common screening tool for depression in primary care and a burdensome necessity for accurate clinical coding […]
Julian Sheather on the architecture of happiness
I have recently been reading a report on ethical issues in public health from the Nuffield Foundation on Bioethics. It is a lovely document, subtle and interrogative, delightfully rich, as all good thought should be, in unanswered questions. […]
Ike Anya: Why organise a conference on Nigerian health….in London?
A quiet milestone passed in May this year, when Nigerians marked nine years of unbroken civilian government, the longest period in the 48 years since independence. A year earlier, the peaceful handover of power from one civilian president to another was another significant milestone. This period has coincided with an era of unprecedented high oil […]
Cam Donaldson on managing the healthcare credit crunch
With NHS budget increases levelling off pre-credit crunch and now with the crunch itself, there has never been a more important time, in recent years at least, to be thinking about how to manage scarce healthcare resources for maximum gain to patients and the wider community. […]
Vidhya Alakeson on the credit crunch and US health insurance
Banks, insurance companies and home owners have already fallen victim to the US financial crisis. Now healthcare is under fire. Last week, the state of Hawaii announced that it was ending Keiki Care, the only universal health insurance program for children in the United States. In the face of a projected deficit of $900 million […]