Clipping Board » Medical Myths ─ The truth about healthcare is often different from what you intuitively think.
March 18, 2009, Apple Daily
Currently, across Taiwan, regardless of political affiliation (blue or green), there is severe criticism of Kuo Kuan-ying for using the pen name Fan Lan-chin to publish remarks deemed "insulting to Taiwan." However, if one calmly reflects, it becomes clear that what he said was the truth. First, we should not assume that Kuo Kuan-ying’s self-identification as a "high-class mainlander" implies contempt for all Hoklo, Hakka, and indigenous people in Taiwan, as there are also "low-class mainlanders" included in this categorization—meaning it is not ethnic discrimination. Many "high-class Hoklo" and "high-class Hakka" also express dissatisfaction in their daily conversations about Taiwan’s electoral culture, political situation, and social chaos. The difference is that these individuals lack Kuo Kuan-ying’s literary talent, time, and courage to publicly publish such views. Kuo Kuan-ying possesses the noble qualities of a traditional Chinese scholar—cynicism, a commitment to writing, and engagement with the world—placing him alongside historical figures like Wen Tianxiang and Shi Kefa as a scholar-martyr.
The foolishness of "Taiwanese bumpkins" is too numerous to list, with examples everywhere. Here, I will cite just one from the medical field. The poor quality of Taiwan’s healthcare is widely misunderstood by both the government and the public. Instead of investigating the root causes and planning improvements, they treat medical care as routine consumer service, regulating it under the Consumer Protection Act as part of the service industry—utterly foolish. The poorly designed National Health Insurance (NHI) system is not only wasteful but already bankrupt. Its impact has damaged medical education, leading to subpar physician quality, frequent misdiagnoses, and harm to patients. On March 17, 2009, news reported that Changhua Hospital’s laboratory contamination led to erroneous tuberculosis test results, with eight people misdiagnosed and subjected to unnecessary treatment. A competent physician diagnosing tuberculosis should consider symptoms, medical history, exposure, diet, physical exams, chest X-rays, blood tests, and sputum staining and culture. A well-trained doctor would not diagnose tuberculosis based solely on sputum staining and might even identify suspicious test results for verification. This incident is not isolated but merely the tip of the iceberg of Taiwan’s subpar physician quality.
**Heavy Investment in Herbal Medicine Research**
The same day’s news also reported that the Medical Reform Foundation, along with 76 groups including labor, social welfare, patient advocacy, and medical organizations, submitted a petition to the Executive Yuan and the Control Yuan. They demanded that the NHI Fee Negotiation Committee disclose meeting records to show how the NT$460 billion NHI budget is allocated, criticizing the committee for controlling such vast funds without transparency. This highlights widespread public dissatisfaction with the NHI, even as the government boasts of Taiwan’s global reputation for its healthcare system, claiming other countries come to learn from it. The public remains unaware of the truth—that a physician’s NHI consultation fee for a single visit is a meager NT$240, less than the cost of treating a dog or chicken.
Taiwan’s government and private sector mistakenly believe that researching Chinese herbal medicine will easily yield profitable new drugs for global markets. Thus, they invest heavily in large-scale national research projects—akin to the Ministry of National Defense researching improvements to horses and bows for export profits. In contrast, the U.S. National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health only studies whether alternative therapies are safe and effective to protect public health, not to exploit public ignorance for profit.
Now, the Department of Health is drafting a "Collaborative Care Plan for Chinese and Western Medicine Wards"—like the Chief of the General Staff forming a hybrid combat unit of missile battalions and archery teams.Currently, the Health Insurance Bureau is struggling to avoid bankruptcy, yet it wastes money on useless and harmful integrated Chinese-Western medical therapies—shouldn’t this be condemned?
In short, sensible Taiwanese should recognize that Kuo Kuan-ying’s remarks serve as a wake-up call, jolting them out of a nightmare. They must remember the ancient adage: "Frank advice may offend the ear but benefits conduct, just as bitter medicine cures sickness." Instead of reacting with anger and hurling abuse, they should reflect.
The author is the Deputy Superintendent of the Koo Foundation Sun Yat-Sen Cancer Center.
Hsieh Yen-Yao
Source: http:/ / 1- apple. com. tw/ index. ……1475407& NewsType=1& SubSec=67
Fan Lanqin's True Words (Xie Yanyao)
Currently, across Taiwan, regardless of political affiliation (blue or green), there is severe criticism of Kuo Kuan-ying for using the pen name Fan Lan-chin to publish remarks deemed "insulting to Taiwan." However, if one calmly reflects, it becomes clear that what he said was the truth. First, we should not assume that Kuo Kuan-ying’s self-identification as a "high-class mainlander" implies contempt for all Hoklo, Hakka, and indigenous people in Taiwan, as there are also "low-class mainlanders" included in this categorization—meaning it is not ethnic discrimination. Many "high-class Hoklo" and "high-class Hakka" also express dissatisfaction in their daily conversations about Taiwan’s electoral culture, political situation, and social chaos. The difference is that these individuals lack Kuo Kuan-ying’s literary talent, time, and courage to publicly publish such views. Kuo Kuan-ying possesses the noble qualities of a traditional Chinese scholar—cynicism, a commitment to writing, and engagement with the world—placing him alongside historical figures like Wen Tianxiang and Shi Kefa as a scholar-martyr.
The foolishness of "Taiwanese bumpkins" is too numerous to list, with examples everywhere. Here, I will cite just one from the medical field. The poor quality of Taiwan’s healthcare is widely misunderstood by both the government and the public. Instead of investigating the root causes and planning improvements, they treat medical care as routine consumer service, regulating it under the Consumer Protection Act as part of the service industry—utterly foolish. The poorly designed National Health Insurance (NHI) system is not only wasteful but already bankrupt. Its impact has damaged medical education, leading to subpar physician quality, frequent misdiagnoses, and harm to patients. On March 17, 2009, news reported that Changhua Hospital’s laboratory contamination led to erroneous tuberculosis test results, with eight people misdiagnosed and subjected to unnecessary treatment. A competent physician diagnosing tuberculosis should consider symptoms, medical history, exposure, diet, physical exams, chest X-rays, blood tests, and sputum staining and culture. A well-trained doctor would not diagnose tuberculosis based solely on sputum staining and might even identify suspicious test results for verification. This incident is not isolated but merely the tip of the iceberg of Taiwan’s subpar physician quality.
**Heavy Investment in Herbal Medicine Research**
The same day’s news also reported that the Medical Reform Foundation, along with 76 groups including labor, social welfare, patient advocacy, and medical organizations, submitted a petition to the Executive Yuan and the Control Yuan. They demanded that the NHI Fee Negotiation Committee disclose meeting records to show how the NT$460 billion NHI budget is allocated, criticizing the committee for controlling such vast funds without transparency. This highlights widespread public dissatisfaction with the NHI, even as the government boasts of Taiwan’s global reputation for its healthcare system, claiming other countries come to learn from it. The public remains unaware of the truth—that a physician’s NHI consultation fee for a single visit is a meager NT$240, less than the cost of treating a dog or chicken.
Taiwan’s government and private sector mistakenly believe that researching Chinese herbal medicine will easily yield profitable new drugs for global markets. Thus, they invest heavily in large-scale national research projects—akin to the Ministry of National Defense researching improvements to horses and bows for export profits. In contrast, the U.S. National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health only studies whether alternative therapies are safe and effective to protect public health, not to exploit public ignorance for profit.
Now, the Department of Health is drafting a "Collaborative Care Plan for Chinese and Western Medicine Wards"—like the Chief of the General Staff forming a hybrid combat unit of missile battalions and archery teams.Currently, the Health Insurance Bureau is struggling to avoid bankruptcy, yet it wastes money on useless and harmful integrated Chinese-Western medical therapies—shouldn’t this be condemned?
In short, sensible Taiwanese should recognize that Kuo Kuan-ying’s remarks serve as a wake-up call, jolting them out of a nightmare. They must remember the ancient adage: "Frank advice may offend the ear but benefits conduct, just as bitter medicine cures sickness." Instead of reacting with anger and hurling abuse, they should reflect.
The author is the Deputy Superintendent of the Koo Foundation Sun Yat-Sen Cancer Center.
Hsieh Yen-Yao
Source: http:/ / 1- apple. com. tw/ index. ……1475407& NewsType=1& SubSec=67
2009/04/27 05:41