Shared vision for health

My Case Health website recorded its first controversial Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) treatment health success story in November 2003. A significant increase in LDN linked success stories prompted me to write the article: "Drug Stops Multiple Sclerosis - But Sufferer's Can't Get it" (published here in an alternate version: "Anecdotal evidence points to relief for MS sufferers"). The article highlights the growing number of LDN health success stories linked to many auto-immune based diseases, the absence of mainstream recognition of patient testimony, and; advocates for health framework reform.

The Case Health website remains at concept stage, however; the article "Drug Stops Multiple Sclerosis – But Sufferer's Can't Get it" represents an inaugural proof-of-concept document.

Case Health - Health Success Stories is a free worldwide community health service website that collects and shares patient anecdotal evidence of success and news of significant research results. The site was created in 2001 and is located online at casehealth.com.au and casehealth.com.

Proposal - Vision for Health Reform

With governments around the world presently considering or developing new health frameworks, I hope you'll agree the timing is right for visionary reform:

Our health systems should be recording and sharing health successes and failures (learnings), including patient perspectives because;

a) success breeds success and when the path to success is shortened, people suffer less, and;
b) because 'learnings' can alert us to risks associated with failure, consequently reducing risks.

What would a 'Shared Health Accomplishments and Research Environment' look like?

1. A robust, secure health IT infrastructure sharing successes so they can become repeatable and sustainable, and; sharing failures so they can be avoided.

1a. A new Medicare rebate would be paid to all Health Professionals who are prepared to spend time documenting and sharing detailed patient histories of successes and failures (learnings) through a central database. Implementing this type of framework not only acknowledges quality patient care and treatment but ensures success is repeatable and sustainable, and guards against treatment failure.

To substantiate the integrity of submissions, the patient would confirm or counter-sign. The database would build slowly, with integrity, and therefore grow more valuable with time, delivering ever-increasing dividends for the future.

A "weighting" would be applied to each submission, depending on the qualification of the Health Professional. Submissions by less qualified allied health professionals would initially be assigned a lower 'weighting' but would attract a higher 'weighting' as the volume of corroborating testimonies increases.