The cardiologist--a chained Prometheus

Robespierre Queiroz da Costa Ribeiro1

  • 1Secretaria de Estado de Saúde de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil. rqueiroz@cardiol.br

Insights

Healthcare resources are misallocated, prioritizing costly treatments for diseases like cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes over cost-effective health promotion. This approach neglects preventative strategies, leading to healthcare inequities.

Area of Science:

  • Paleomedicine
  • Public Health
  • Health Economics

Background:

  • The Flexnerian model of medical education and practice remains dominant.
  • Knowledge of disease burden and determinants is extensive.
  • Current healthcare systems face challenges in effectively addressing major diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To critically review deviations from the Flexnerian model.
  • To analyze resource allocation in healthcare.
  • To evaluate the effectiveness of health promotion versus treatment.

Main Methods:

  • Critical review of existing literature.
  • Analysis of paleomedicine perspectives.
  • Examination of healthcare resource allocation patterns.

Main Results:

  • Significant resources are allocated to treating ischemic cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes mellitus.
  • Risk factors for these diseases are well-understood and modifiable through health promotion.
  • Health promotion is a more cost-effective strategy than biotechnology.

Conclusions:

  • Current healthcare practices deviate from optimal resource allocation.
  • There is an overemphasis on individual treatment over population-level health promotion.
  • This imbalance represents a significant healthcare injustice.

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