Controversial Michael Moore Flick 'Sicko' Will Compare U.S. Health Care with Cuba's

Nurses Activism

Published

Health care advances in Cuba

According to the Associated Press as cited in the Post article, "Cuba has made recent advancements in biotechnology and exports its treatments to 40 countries around the world, raking in an estimated $100 million a year. ... In 2004, the U.S. government granted an exception to its economic embargo against Cuba and allowed a California drug company to test three cancer vaccines developed in Havana."

http://alternet.org/envirohealth/50911/?page=1

:lol2::lol2:

Yeah, this article seems very non-biased and objective...:uhoh3:

I am hoping someone else saw this and will post what they remember.I know.

I did see the interview but it is not available on the web site of "The Factor"

There is a pod cast of the rest of the show, in particular the discussion of the police officer arrested for suspicion of killing a woman pregnant by him.

Did anyone else happen to hear the interview?

I am also biased in favor of the nurse who cares for children with cancer

Specializes in Cardiac Surg, IR, Peds ICU, Emergency.
The central question remains:

Is the America we live in the America we think we live in, and the America we want to live in?

Michael Moore is not the issue. The issue is what kind of society do we want to live in? What kind of society are we leaving for our children? At some point we have to get back to asking each other: How can we build a society to promote the common good?

I want to live in a society that is not influenced by the half-truths, mis-representations, and outright lies of a person who uses these very issues to improperly influence people to react emotionally, and thereby enrich him.

Specializes in none yet, but I'm VERY excited!.
I don't give up on people. I think encourageing and teaching people how to be healthy can help them. My daughter went to a Nurse Practitioner who spent 45 minutes with her. She was obese and hypertensive.

She saw flip charts and learned a lot.

Since that day she has lost more than 70 pounds, exercises, eats a healthy vegetarian diet, and has a normal plood pressure without medication.

A friend had to ask her HMO for information when diagnosed with diabetes.

She got a consult with a dietition, classes, and referral to a support group.

She started taking a walk around the block before going to work, slowly changesd her diet, and learned a lot.

Now seven years later she has lost more than 100 pounds, is off all medication, looks great, and can enjoy physical activities with her son.

There are reasons people don't know even simple things.

Each generation needs to know the simple facts.

Too many see the advertisements and comflicting research findings on coffee or wine and think it is too hard.

Sometimes all it takes is the right health professional to encourage, reinforce, lecture, tell the truth, and yes- teach.

I don't give up on people either. I do think that everyone should be taught the basics. I do not think that we need to go beyond the basics with people who do not even stick to the basics, and I don't think we should spend resources pounding a message into those who already know the basics but choose to ignore them. Those wasted resources that can be applied elswhere.

Of course educating someone about how to manage a disease that is new the them is an exception. Of course you must educate diabetics about the specifics surrounding that disease. However, I work with many diabetics who are stunningly obese and know full-well what they should be doing. I don't think resources should be spent educating them on what they already know.

It's not that I have no compassion. Quite the contrary. I want to spend resources helping as much as I can where I can. There are plenty of messages out there conveying the idea that we need a variety of fruits and veggies. Spending more on that message (for example) will not buy us anything. I think we may actually agree.

Specializes in none yet, but I'm VERY excited!.
The central question remains:

Is the America we live in the America we think we live in, and the America we want to live in?

Michael Moore is not the issue. The issue is what kind of society do we want to live in? What kind of society are we leaving for our children? At some point we have to get back to asking each other: How can we build a society to promote the common good?

Yes, that's a good point.

I think all of this discussion boils down to some simple facts.

Government officials are, by-and-large pretty well insulated from accountability much of the time. And when they are held accountable, it is usually after they've already stolen or wasted huge amounts of the kinds of resources we need to address the issues we're discussing here. Voting isn't currently a very effective way to hold people accountable.

The hospital and pharmaceutical CEOs are similarly insulated. They are only accountable to a slightly lesser degree because of competition. However, the leveling effects of competition are weaker than many of us would like to believe because of limited choice in many cases (not exactly the kind of raw competition you get between pepsi and coke when they're both on the shelf in front of you).

I want to help the most people in the best way. The hard part of that to swallow is that there ARE limited resources. In order to do the most good, we have to warm up to the fact that we may have to forgo a finger attachment in order to save resources for other, more important things. This may sound cold, but it feels compassionate to me.

This country is debtiv.gif

dollars in debt to real people and real countries. And yes I know President Bush contributed to this, but I also know President Clinton did too, and so on and so on. And no, balancing a budget by taxing folks out of the desire to make more money doesn't remedy the problem. And yes there are other areas we could cut (without a doubt).

This debt curve goes vertical because of un-payable interest at some point.

We are not the riches country in the world in terms of monetary wealth anymore. That wealth is imaginary.

When the debt curve goes vertical, the only way to pay it will be by devaluing the money. Then our children will have much more to worry about than universal health care.

Sorry for going off-topic, but it all seems related to me somehow (of course I just got off of 4 consecutive 12-hour night shifts).

From "Victoria News"

...Is the film flawed in its depiction of Canada's socialist-like health-care system?

Sure. Moore talks to Canadians in an Ontario waiting room, and none of them have been there for over an hour. We all know average wait times are considerably longer...

http://www.vicnews.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=36&cat=48&id=1016640&more=0

I want to live in a society that is not influenced by the half-truths, mis-representations, and outright lies of a person who uses these very issues to improperly influence people to react emotionally, and thereby enrich him.

Michael Moore is not the issue. The questions and concerns that he raises about health care, family support, living wages and vacation are all legitimate items for discussion within a democracy. Each of these areas has an impact on health and wellness for people. The real issue is what are we going to do as a society to foster improved health.

One of the jobs of journalists and documentarians is to "afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted." Given the strong visceral reaction that he generates within you I think he has succeeded in the first part of the mission of journalism.

If you don't like his solution for comforting the afflicted offer something that is:

a. More efficient

b. Cheaper.

Specializes in none yet, but I'm VERY excited!.
If you don't like his solution for comforting the afflicted offer something that is:

a. More efficient

b. Cheaper.

You forgot enforceable. It can be more efficient and cheaper on the surface until the sticky and inefficient fingers get ahold of a good idea. Then we have what results after being sold a bill of goods.

This applies to MM's solution as well.

I read in our local paper that MM himself is considering getting into shape because he's reflected that his failure to take responsibility to take care of his own health a bit hypocritical. I think he may have hit on part of the solution there. ;)

Governments have given money and support to allies since the beginning of government. The goals are usually to make themselves safer by having a larger base of support in the case of aggression by another country. Our government is charged w/ protecting the citizens of this country first and then our allies and innocent citizens of other nations. You may not like how our gov.t chooses to do this and sometimes things don't work the way they want it to, but that is the goal.

Yes people die in wars, and yes people have died b/c of American actions but the same could be said of every nation on earth.

BTW, since this is off topic, I'll leave it alone after this.

True, people do die in wars, but I can't think of another government that claims to be a "bastion of democracy", and a "promoter of democracy around the world" yet through covert action has been responsible for the death of millions.

Specializes in burn, geriatric, rehab, wound care, ER.
The central question remains:

Is the America we live in the America we think we live in, and the America we want to live in?

Michael Moore is not the issue. The issue is what kind of society do we want to live in? What kind of society are we leaving for our children? At some point we have to get back to asking each other: How can we build a society to promote the common good?

I have been thinkng about this a lot. Is universal health care possible in this country? It seems that the country has more of an individualistic ideology rather than a collectivist ideology i.e." as long as I'm all right, I'm all right". Is it because we are a nation of immigrants?

As for me I am more of a collectivist than an individualist -probably one of the reason's I went into nursing in the first place. I would love to work on building a society that promotes the common good, rather than further fattening the wallets of the corporations. I would love to leave society better than I found it. I just don't know if my fellow countrymen are up to the job.

Specializes in Trauma,ER,CCU/OHU/Nsg Ed/Nsg Research.
Universal health care pushed

Groups hope film 'SiCKO' helps bill

...The documentary, released yesterday, depicts problems with America's health-care system. Before the first matinee, nurses, legislators and community representatives held a press conference to support House Bill 676, which would establish health coverage similar to Medicare for all Americans. The bill is pending before Congress.

"Nurses are going to be a key to changing this health-care system because they are in the middle of the crisis," said Kay Tillow, director of organization for the Nurses Professional Organization. ...

..."We have an ugly and broken health care system and it puts profit before patients. ... It uses dollars to ration out compassion," she said. "We believe "SiCKO" will touch the heart of a nation."...

http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20070630&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=706300443&Template=printart

Thank you for posting this. I was there, and sat with Kay during the movie. She herself is a cancer survivor, and a tireless advocate for patients and nurses- an amazing role model.

One thing the article didn't mention is that Dr. Quadri's clinic is a free clinic. It survives on donations and charity alone. He's awesome.

Specializes in Trauma,ER,CCU/OHU/Nsg Ed/Nsg Research.
I am hoping someone else saw this and will post what they remember.I know.

I did see the interview but it is not available on the web site of "The Factor"

There is a pod cast of the rest of the show, in particular the discussion of the police officer arrested for suspicion of killing a woman pregnant by him.

Did anyone else happen to hear the interview?

I am also biased in favor of the nurse who cares for children with cancer

I saw the interview. I do have to say that Bill wasn't as mean to her as the article suggests, although the quotes are accurate. She made a very eloquent case, and he respectfully disagreed with her after she made her point. She did a great job.

Specializes in Cardiac Care, ICU.
From "Victoria News"

What this article clearly points out is there are flaws in both systems. Instead of changeing one set of problems for another, wouldn't it be better to keep what is good about our system and try to fix what doesn't work?

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