AS I UNDERSTAND IT, universal healthcare means that “anyone should be able to access healthcare anytime from anywhere at any time”. That would be the classic mantra.
Based on the brick and mortar paradigm, that should mean that anyone should be admitted and treated in any hospital at any time, regardless of whether he or she has health insurance or not.
Having health insurance or not is actually the biggest issue, because any hospital has to be paid, not matter what. That is the reason why they would refuse to admit patients if they do not have health insurance, regardless of whether it is a matter of life and death for these patients or not.
As interpreted by the government, universal healthcare means that every citizen is a member of PhilHealth, but that does not necessarily mean that his coverage is sufficient even for major ailments.
To some extent, it could be said that the hospitals would refuse admission to those who do not have health insurance, because being admitted would mean that the patient would already take up space in the hospital, and it would mean a loss of revenues for them if the patient would have no means to pay.
That is how it is in the brick and mortar world, but the situation is totally different in the electronic world. According to some statistics, many of those who die in this country would pass away without seeing a doctor.
That being the case, we could probably theorize that some of those who died without seeing a doctor might have survived had they seen a doctor. As we know it, many of those who die without seeing a doctor have been prevented from doing so either by reasons of money, or by reasons of distance.
In the electronic world, the classic mantra would have to be modified to now read “anyone should be able to access healthcare anytime from anywhere at any time, using any available device”. As it is used in the sentence, “any available device” could mean a landline phone, a radio handset, a cell phone, or via any internet means such as email accounts or websites, including social networking sites (SNS).
Although the term “telemedicine” would seemingly sound high tech, it need not be super high tech because the use of any electronic device for healthcare purposes would already be considered as “telemedicine”. As an example, using ordinary walkie-talkie sets would already qualify as “telemedicine”.
As it is defined however, being electronic does not mean being digital, and being computerized does not mean being automated.
However, since healthcare often involves life and death situations, it would be reasonable to say that digital and automated solutions should be used as much as possible, especially if these are already available. In this context, being affordable should not even be an issue, because there is no price to the life of a person if he or she is in a life or death situation.
In reality, affordability should really not be an issue, because medical technologies in general and “telemedicine” in particular have progressed in such a way that these are already economical. (To be continued/PN)
