Interactive Tool: Are You at Risk for a Heart Attack? - What does this tool measure?

I have worked in the English National Health Service (NHS)for twenty years. In England the term ‘socialized’ health care is not recognized, by the man on the street. The service is certainly not free either. Funding streams are derived mostly from business tax, as well as taxation on income. I now live in the USA, and I don’t see that Americans pay less tax, for not having a comparable health care system.

One of the joys of working in the NHS is that it is possible to separate, easily, treatment from income. In the US the doctor has to be a business manager as much (? or more) as a health care provider. There is enormous pressure to ‘promote’ treatment in order to pay the bills. As a salaried employee, the doctor working in he NHS is concerned  with the efficacy of treatments, and not the spreadsheet.  And yes, of course, there are also very excellent doctors  in the US, also concerned with the effectiveness of treatments.  But the fiscal concerns also have other implications. The extent to which medical care is marketed, everywhere, 24/7 is absurd. And, I know this from looking at the US model and how my own specialism is being promoted.  

The claims made in the US ‘infomercial’  extolling the virtues of some  treatments, is at times as funny as it is embarrassing. Patient expectation, from such commercialism, is unrealistically high, and when the outcome fails to match the ‘marketing’ effort what happens next ? Another group of professionals get to benefit - and litigation soon follows.

 Freed from the task of salesman / business manager / marketing strategist, the doctor can instead focus on and discuss openly and transparently with the patient the realistic pros & cons of various treatment options.

Are there budgetary restrictions in the NHS – sure there are. There are restrictions in the US system also but they show up differently.  And the NHS is working on the problem of waiting lists and has made some good headway in the last 10 years. And if there is a real emergency, i.e. a heart attack, there is no waiting list. Emergency  care , along with other care, is excellent.

There are many excellent doctors working in the NHS. Many, but not all of those doctors are salaried, and manage on a pretty (darn) good income, all the same. The family practitioner / GP is not salaried either,  but is instead self employed – also on a very good income. And I have never met a ‘poor’ doctor, and possibly not as many ‘medical’ millionaires either.

I have personal experience of both systems of health care. There is no single perfect solution. But I do detect a lot of unnecessary hysteria about the prospect of  ‘socialized’ healthcare, whatever that is supposed to mean. You might conclude from listening to the naysayers this will bring about the end of civilization for the American citizen. It won’t. People don’t like change and there are politicians happily exploiting their fears and concerns with partisan propaganda (beware of both parties). Sure there will be problems along the way, just as there are problems now. Health care is EXPENSIVE.

I don’t know all the answers but, I do know one thing – for the first time in 47 years, I am in the US, a legal resident, and I am now without healthcare cover.

This is also one of the few developed nations where a person can starve on the streets or where mentally-ill people can die from neglect. We are a great country but we are becoming a country like Mexico with the very wealthy and the very poor and no middle class. Good medical care is needed for  a country to become good. Germany has a great health care system and so does Canada. So does Cuba but there are problems with their systems to.

So why don't we all work together to create a system worthy of our great nation?

what does heart attacks have to do with national healthcare ?

This tool is excellent. I have also posted about it in my health information blog. A more recent addition to the tool is an ultrasound scan generated measurement of the thickness of the neck arteries (called intima-media thickness) which adds to the accuracy of the cardiovascular risk.

There is a reason we are the richest country on the planet, there is a reason that despite our extremely large population no country comes remotely close to matching our per capita. The only countries with more are micronations dependent on 1 sole industry(typically finance or oil) kuwait, lexomburg or are some cases just a tax haven for the rich in a area surrounded by prosperity. aka lexomubrg. Anyways because we are a capalist country, we like to have additonal freedoms that said provides. One is choice.
   For example national healthcare is only effective if its mandatory healthcare, in the commonwealth of mass. if you don't have health insurance it's illegal. A law that is enforced by stealing your tax refund for up to 1,000 dollars. And it's not with discretion, basically after taking 1,000 dollars, the law is capped. However it increaes every year, the limit. In the land of the free, why consumptory force?
   Also, the employer doesn't have their "best interest" on hand. They do, there is a reason employers offer things like vacations, health care 401k, cafeteria plans, free gym memberships, cruise tickets, et cetra et cetra it is to attract employees and to compete with fellow companies. Wages along with health care plan are extremely important to people, so they tend to pick which is advantegous to what they want. It's basic economics. Common sense.
     Also increased health care means increased taxes, substanitally, which very well could lead to a weakening in the economy and thus wages. Aka europe, there is a main reason we are richer then our brothers across the ocean.  There is a reason why invariably despite the recession or times of prosperity, we have lower unemployment, a gdp which is equal to almost all of europe and higher overall wealth. Lower taxes and less government control.  Also nationalized health care due to the inherent nature(is it fact by personal experinces if not numbers that the government is bloated, economically retarded and terrible when it comes to money) due to its inherent nature is less effective, hence why the rich in canada and across the globe have created a multi billion dollar tourist health industry.
         I'm young and healthy, so the price of health insurance is irrelvant on me. Or when i need it I'll be smart enough to pick the right job. I.E. I applied to a state job within my qualifications which not only pays 30 percent higher than my current job, it also pays 75 percent of health care cost, free dental/eye glasses and free tuiton. Wow! I picked a better job! Wow! Also purusing various companies, they also offer great deals with good pay! WOW! 
 So if in fact a problem, people can demand lower prices. Which has been somewhat effective, a la walmart 4 dollar perscriptions, as well as clones by other pharmacies. Commercalized nursing centers at places like cvs for basic colds, health problems. As well as charity care(most hospitals have it) and required medical care in an emergency. Both charity care and the law provide the poor with the exact problem people cry about it. And let's not forget the ability of choice.