Et Tu Ama
Covid 19 might be calming down finally but the world is still going crazy. I was going to write an article about Magnesium or maybe review Dr. Gundry’s latest book, “The Energy Paradox.” 
I was thinking I would review the vaccination rates in various states and show their correlation or lack thereof with infection rates. But then I came across an article about my profession that I couldn’t believe. Last week the biggest medical organization…the American Medical Association…issued statements to the effect that it supports critical race theory and no longer supports equal treatment to all people. The article I read states that “The AMA also makes clear that it now rejects the concepts of “equality” and “meritocracy,” which have been goals in the fields of medical science and medical care.“ Furthermore, and I am quoting again…“Equality as a process means providing the same amounts and types of resources across populations,” the association said. “Seeking to treat everyone the ‘same,’ ignores the historical legacy of disinvestment and deprivation through historical policy and practice of marginalizing and minoritizing communities.”
I am of course not suggesting that minorities have not been screwed over in the past and may be still today but isn’t it the essence of America and shouldn’t it be the essence of medicine to treat everyone equally? How can this major organization reject equal treatment of all people? Needless to say I am no longer a member of the AMA and it’s interesting that I got an offer via the internet to renew my membership at 50% off. I wouldn’t renew my membership if they paid me. In my office its our explicit policy to treat everyone…no matter where you come from, no matter where you are going, no matter how you identify, your gender or sexual preferences (as long as it doesn’t involve minors) no matter how much you are worth, no matter your age, no matter what…everyone deserves to be treated equally with fairness and kindness and hopefully understanding of your medical issues. As the well known business expert Mr. Rogers has so aptly stated, there are three rules of success…Rule #1, Be Kind. Rule #2, Be Kind…Rule #3, Be Kind.
Of course I have felt for some time now that my profession has lost its way. I have seen how we, instead of looking for the cause of disease, now only look to treat the symptoms with medications and procedures. Interestingly it all started when I read Dr. Gundry’s second book the Plant Paradox. I realized then I was only focusing on the symptoms and not the cause. The obvious fact that every physician knows but few acknowledge is that we should be focusing on the basics of your health…your diet, your exercise, your sleep and your stress. Don’t cover up the indigestion…find out the cause. Don’t just treat the high blood pressure…it’s a sign that the patient is doing something wrong…find out what is wrong and fix it and the high blood pressure goes away. Healthy people do not have heart disease, cancer and diabetes…it’s when we deviate from healthy habits that we get ill. Returning to healthy habits will resolve the illness. My profession has been trained to study pathophysiology in medical school then completely ignore it in practice.
The current practice of medicine is superb at managing your illness but if you want to really improve your health…to regain your wellness, you are not likely to find a champion in your primary care office. We pay the most by far of any nation for health care and we rank low on real health measures. And now I find that the most prestigious medical association is more focused on social considerations than real equality of health care. Sorry, but I am going to stay firmly in the camp that believes all people should be cared for equally and if that somehow gets me in trouble with the “powers that be,’’ so be it. Opposing the AMA shouldn’t get me in trouble with the Medical Society or the Health Department should it? Free speech may not be so free in America anymore. Maybe it’s a little hubristic but I close with the words of Martin Luther at the Imperial Diet of Worms in 1521. ”I cannot and I will not recant anything for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. God help me. Amen.”
