11/11/2016

Clinic without a menu

I suppose, it is a trend of the time. Almost all clinics have some sort of a menu: depending on the chosen "course" treatment duration may be set in intervals as short as 5 to 10 minute and the associated treatment fees can be graded in as small increments as 10 cents.
Addition of certain "optional treatment" forms or an extension of the treatment duration results in "surcharges".
 
THAT is most likely the "normal" way to run a business.
 
However, I cannot bring myself to accept this business model.
 
People visiting any clinic are PERSONS / SUFFERING / from one or more DISEASE/S = patients.
And people are not a set of parts like a machine. When a person complains of left knee pain and therefore has treated his/her left knee (only), that makes a "repair job" out of a treatment. If the person in question has problems NOT related the musculoskeletal system, s/he will need to visit still another repair shop. Each repair shop deals with its specialty/type of parts, but there is a real danger of losing sight of the "person".


 
Oriental medicine essentially treats "PEOPLE".
All people involved in the "healing arts" should care for those PERSONS SUFFERING from one or more DISEASE/S. That is not only so in oriental medicine, but Hippocrates, who is sometimes called the father of modern medicine, explicitly said the same thing. As a traditional medical craftsman I do believe in this concept and accordingly try to run a clinic without any menus. 
If possible at all, I use ALL treatment modalities at my disposal I consider necessary to provide the patient relief from his/her disease and do take as much time for my treatments as I deem necessary. And .. over the past 30 years I have NEVER taken any form of extra or surcharge.
I am definitely not going to change this basic treatment concept.

KW: