Sicko -Tribune Letter

Dear Tribune Editors:
Thank you for Helen Evans’ “What Michael Moore left on the cutting room floor” commentary. The healthcare issue in the United States is far too complex to find a solution in a Michael Moore documentary, especially when it only shows the sales pitch for the English healthcare system and not the grotesque underbelly of long waiting times for treatment and a system where really only the wealthy receive appropriate care.
As a hospital administrator attending an Executive Program at Kellogg School of Management recently, I was surprised by one of the other attendees, a cardiologist from Spain. For the first three days of the course this Physician berated the American healthcare system repeatedly. On the fourth day I confronted the physician and asked him why then would he attend a course taught in a well respected branch of a United States’ institution, Northwestern University.
“Because,” he said. “Without American research and development the rest of the world would suffer.” His message was clear, while our healthcare system is flawed and in need of a massive overhaul, the money and resources devoted to the advancement of healthcare in American is unprecedented world wide and without it, the state of healthcare in every corner of the Earth would be far worse off.
Sincerely,
Tim Egan
Vice President & Executive Director
Norwegian American Hospital
773.292.8509
tegan@nahospital.org