Ugh. I hate how that idea has worked its way into the collective consciousness.
Healthcare is one of the cases where the market can’t work even in theory. There’s no upper limit to what people will spend, as a percentage of their net worth, to keep a child alive.
It shouldn’t even be a conversation. Just “nope, hospitals cannot be profitable, they are a social good, we fund them as a society” end of fucking discussion.
hospitals cannot be profitable, they are a social good, we fund them as a society
l live in Germany, a country with universal healthcare, so basically we do exactly that.
So perhaps “profitability” is the wrong word here.
But funds are still limited, and if the authorities determine that the money is used less efficient in one place than in another, they will consolidate and close the first place (that’s happening for the hospital in the picture).
We have reached, or even passed the limits of that aproach, though.
Doctors and hospitals have to be realistically reachable for people and not a 100km away after all…
I think building an elevator there is a better option.
Naturally there are also several elevators at the place.
But you must have other routes for exit that are easily available in the case of an emergency.
Also many people aren’t especially fond of elevators (me included).
The stairway stays. The elevator could be built in the “hole”
l am surprised that the hospital, being halfway closed because of non-profitability anyway, had enough funds left somewhere to even install the nets.
A new elevator would probably have cost more than the whole building complex is worth by now…
Ugh. I hate how that idea has worked its way into the collective consciousness.
Healthcare is one of the cases where the market can’t work even in theory. There’s no upper limit to what people will spend, as a percentage of their net worth, to keep a child alive.
It shouldn’t even be a conversation. Just “nope, hospitals cannot be profitable, they are a social good, we fund them as a society” end of fucking discussion.
l live in Germany, a country with universal healthcare, so basically we do exactly that.
So perhaps “profitability” is the wrong word here.
But funds are still limited, and if the authorities determine that the money is used less efficient in one place than in another, they will consolidate and close the first place (that’s happening for the hospital in the picture).
We have reached, or even passed the limits of that aproach, though.
Doctors and hospitals have to be realistically reachable for people and not a 100km away after all…