Page 17 - COM Outlook - Spring 2013

17 COM Outlook . Spring 2013
FACULTY PERSPECTIVE
Focusing on Preventive Care
Helps Create a Healthier Future
By John C. Pellosie, Jr., D.O., M.P.H., FAOCOPM
Chair of Preventive Medicine and Director of Graduate Programs
We all have a vested interest in the health
and wellbeing of our communities, coworkers,
neighbors, and families. As physicians, we are
very good at disease management for the indi-
vidual, but there is more we must do—a holistic
approach we must embrace—called primary pre-
vention. We must not concentrate on already ex-
isting conditions and remain reactionary. Instead,
we must address the avoidance of injury and
challenges to both physical and mental health.
Does our culture truly want to prevent
medical problems? Unfortunately, with most
issues, we tend to wait until there is a problem
and then address it. We tend to wait until there
is a fire, perhaps until we see smoke, before
we run to put the fire out. Many times we do
not analyze the event and learn from it, so we
neglect to correct the root causes that could
prevent future problems.
Consequently, a paradigm shift is required in
our culture. In the field of health and medicine,
we must primarily prevent injury and illness and
not just provide disease management. This prac-
tice would then save us from increased morbid-
ity, mortality, and expense.
Changing perceptions has to do with promot-
ing prevention and preventive care. Prevention is
the avoidance of injury or illness, so we must take
care now and in the future to master prevention,
which requires culture changes, being individually
responsible, and accepting the results of one’s ac-
tions. This includes primary prevention practices
such as childhood vaccinations, critical thinking,
and making healthy life choices.
Marketing tactics target us on both con-
scious and subconscious levels to influence us as
individuals and as members in our communities.
Marketing strategies focus on specific portions of
society to create a desire or need to have things
that make us a part of what is considered accept-
able, favored, and trendy.
A business model that supports unhealthy
practices is troubling and should not be used
in the fields of health and medicine because
the goals do not serve the patient and the
health care provider.
When we apply a business model to deal
with health and medicine as a business venture,
we must formulate it to focus concern on overall
health and wellbeing. We are very good at dis-
ease management and the use of technological
advances, but do we really want to wait until a
health crisis happens? Are we only interested in
assuring ongoing visits, diagnostics, and labora-
tories to fatten the bottom line?
Primary prevention would help us avoid
many health crises. I suggest a return to the old
model of the doctor and patient. Anything that
interferes with the respect and success of that
relationship should be deemed unacceptable.
The general practitioner approach needs to be
renewed, with the doctor serving as both patient
advocate and gatekeeper.
Many may not agree and say, “We can
never go back to the way it was. We must
move ahead.” Like it or not, we are all moving
toward the future, but we must apply lessons
learned, models, and concepts to address our
future needs—not just make changes to cre-
ate needless jobs to assure income streams.
Stop allowing marketing to lower the bar within
society. Building a good life means helping and
living alongside one another, depending on one
another to create and maintain a healthy com-
munity and society.
As we move forward, let’s consider whether
we are making changes that are positive and
beneficial or mostly materialistic for business
and/or political advancement. Do the ends serve
the means for good or just for profit? How will
we handle the constant flow of information and
avoid overload? We must reevaluate and consid-
er a return to a sound foundation that is simple,
consistent, logical, and easily understood.
We must also return to assuming responsi-
bility for ourselves, our families, and our neigh-
bors while at the same time move away from
complicating issues for gain and distraction. We
must also retreat from marketing medicaliza-
tion paradigms. Modernization has its place,
but we must use it wisely as a tool to prevent
rather than create problems.
COM Outlook is
excited to unveil a
new column that will
touch on a range of
timely and insightful
topics. Called Faculty
Perspective, the edito-
rial think piece will
allow members of the
college’s esteemed
faculty to discuss is-
sues related to their
areas of expertise,
share their ideas for
a brighter tomorrow,
and focus attention on
health-related themes.