21st Century Care and the need to touch the sides

In the developed world the constant to brand and consume generally and medicalise, diagnose and prescribe specifically means that vast quantities of food and drugs go straight down the hatch: rapid swallowed-whole without ever touching the sides. Now the effects of the wind produced is being noticed because the consequences mean a shake of the grim reaper's hand sooner than might be expected.

When health care budgets are compromised it is often the public (mental) health practitioners that find their piggy-bank in pieces. Although evidence-based medicine has its roots in the POLITICAL and SCIENCES domains, its impact seems solely hemispheric - 'local' - largely restricted to the right in terms of Hodges' model. It fails to reach the INTRA - INTERPERSONAL and SOCIAL domains, the places where change really counts.

Using Hodges' model can help the food and drugs to touch the sides, although actually by then of course we are too late!

It's one of many ironies that we need safety nets to catch people at risk. What about a sticky net that can stop all that food and reduce the volume of drugs from commencing this metabolic flight?

If we are to tackle and fully exercise the care problems and issues presented by the 21st century our research, interventions, attitudes and aptitudes must be 4-fold* to ensure that the caring touch is not senseless, but is accompanied by thought. Touching the sides means engaging thought at several levels from common sense through to critical appraisal. Whether we are dealing with individuals, groups, populations or the global family - 'X' truly marks the spot!

*5-fold taking into account beliefs.