Voluntary Diseases - Essay Example

? Voluntary diseases affiliation Voluntary diseases Voluntary diseases are rampant in modern day society. Based on lifestyles persons succumb to diseases they could avoid if they dropped their negative lifestyle. Diseases related to smoking, drug abuse and immorality have been cited as the most rampant voluntary diseases. In most instances voluntary diseases have been based on the same level as the ordinary diseases in terms of Medicare provision (Green & Labonte, 2008). However, in recent years there have been concerns over the way the funds in medical bodies are used. For instance, the National Health Service has been having debates on whether to continue funding diseases caused by one’s lifestyle. According to Petit-Zeman (2005), the number of illnesses caused by lifestyles has been on the rise in the past 10 years. Some argue that the major causative agent of illnesses is carelessness and people should take care of themselves while some claim that it just unfortunate. Since the taxpayers fund the NHS, they feel that it is their right to be given free medical attention on any disease they suffer from. Taking that into consideration there will be concerns over how people look after their health. As much as the people have the right to access free medical care, there should be measures that stop people from living unhealthy lifestyles. In an argument by Lilley (2003) this is only possible if free medical care on certain diseases is dropped. The paper will focus on some of the voluntary diseases common in the society. It will also focus in whether the diseases should receive medical funding from the NHS. Should obesity patients receive free medical funding from the NHS? Obesity is the illness where a person becomes overweight. The condition is then worsens; thus affects the health of the person. Obesity is caused if a person eats up more calories than your body consumes in physical activity. In England the obesity statistics are alarming. A study carried out in 2009, showed that England has the most overweight people in Europe (Klein, 2010). Additionally, 61.3 percent of adults and 28.3 percent of children between the ages of two and ten are overweight. If measures are not taken, 60 percent of men, 50 percent of women and 20 percent of children will be obese by the year 2050 (Klein, 2010). Looking at these statistics it is evident that the NHS will need to spend more funds in obese patients. Obesity can be prevented is a person is willing and ready to lead a healthy eating life. Reasons which should stop the NHS from funding medical care for obese patients I advocate for the NHS dropping free medical attention for obese people, because people cannot keep fit and eat healthy. Incase of illnesses they turn to the NHS for help. This is unfair to the other tax payers who strive to eat healthy and keep fit. It is probable that a yearly cost of 4.2 billion Euros is used to cover for obese related infirmities in England (Barron, 2009). If people can avoid eating junk food, the NHS would save a lot of money and center on more severe illnesses. Since people are not heeding to calls to stop unhealthy consumption, the NHS should then stop funding medical care for illnesses related to being overweight. Why the NHS should not stop funding medical care for obese patients However, it would be inhumane for the NHS to fail to treat these individuals. Obese people suffer from high blood pressure, heart diseases, cancer and weak bones. Illnesses like cancer are deadly disease which should not be ignored. Furthermore, if an individual has paid and funded the NHS it not fair or legal if they succumb to any illness be it from effects of obesity. In the consideration of ethics, it would be a breach if someone dies because they were denied the free NHS funding to cure (Sergeant, 2003). Cirrhosis as a voluntary disease Cirrhosis is a chronic liver disorder which is mostly affect people with constant abuse of tobacco products. Effects of this illness include liver enlargement, fluid accumulation, loss of appetite and jaundice. In most instances, the only remedy to this disease is liver transplant. Normally, liver transplant cost large sums of money. NHS should stop free funding of cirrhosis patients Researchers have indicated that many smokers depend on the NHS to provide medical care to them. Many smokers live below the poverty level line which makes it difficult for them to afford the surgery required to replace affected kidneys (Barron, 2009).This shifts the cost of these transplants to the NHS. Over the years, people have been warned on using tobacco products without prescription, but no positive change has taken effect. In England measures have been taken to sensitize the public on the dangers of smoking. The measures have gone a long way up to abolishing public display of tobacco products. This is evidence that the government and the NHS have done enough to stop individuals for smoking. In other words it would be justified, if free liver transplants for smokers are abolished. It would be an appropriate way of sensitizing the society on the effects of tobacco abuse and saving billions of Euros used to fund the transplants (Britton, 2004). Statistics on the rate of tobacco smokers can be changed for the better if the society became more sensitive on the cost the NHS spends to fund liver transplants. Reasons against denying cirrhosis patients free medical care from the NHS However, legal formalities stop the abolishment from being enacted. It is within the law for every tax payer to receive medical care despite their lifestyle (James & Balding, 2006). Apart from the legal support, some smokers say that the government is not doing enough to make them recover from tobacco addiction. All the government does is to educate the public on dangers of smoking but not considering the addicted few. Considering this, it may not be justifiable to deny individuals who have succumbed to tobacco abuse free medical funds. According to Berridge & Strong (2002) it is not right to deny someone because of their lifestyle. As long as they pay taxes and entitled to free medical treatment it is only the right thing for NHS to do their part and let citizens to live their lifestyles. Due to their smoking lifestyles, it is the only reason that many smokers chose to pay taxes and invest in the NHS (Waters & Swinburn, 2010). Focus on HIV/Aids as a voluntary illness HIV/AIDS is a sexual transmitted disease symptom by very severe opportunistic conditions. These conditions include tuberculosis, high blood pressure and pneumonia. HIV/Aids have gained popularity in years due to the fatal consequences it leaves behind. It is usually a general assumption that most individuals succumb to HIV due to immorality. These claims are mainly attributed to the facts that it’s a sexual transmitted disease. Immorality should be considered as a factor to stop free funding of HIV patients by the NHS Considering immorality, it may be right to stop the free funding of treatment for these patients. Over the years the public in general has been educated about safe sex and consequences of unsafe sex. On a positive note the number of infections has decreased but the rates of infection cannot be ignored (Stretch, 2002). Considering that after infection one needs a life time of medication it would be more logical if individuals are made to pay for their medication. Apart from obesity and cirrhosis HIV cost the NHS a lump sum of money to fund for the supply of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) to patients. Why the NHS should continue funding the treatment of HIV/Aids patients Human rights groups, however turn a move to stop supplying antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) to patient as the worst case of human rights violation. Additionally, there are other means of infection of HIV apart from sexual transmission. Other means may be through blood transfusion or even from mother to child. Denying such patients medication would be punishing them for mistakes they did not commit. According to taxpaying rules, HIV patients are not excluded from deduction which makes them viable to receive treatment funds from the NHS. HIV/AIDS being a very sensitive issue globally, a move to stop the supply of medication by the NHS would be a pullback all efforts by the WHO to create awareness of the disease (Davies, 2008). Conclusion NHS administrators believe that just smokers recovering from surgery cause backlogs in the recovery beds. This is due to complications caused by their lifestyles (Kirby, 2000). They then suggest that smokers should stop smoking prior to their operations. This indicates that the NHS is willing to continue to serve the ill lifestyles members of the society. Paying taxes hinder the efforts to stop the stopping of medicating voluntary diseases. Voluntary diseases occur in almost every life of all persons from careers and diet. Denying people free medication due to the voluntary causes of illnesses may mean the abolishing of NHS since the majority will be excluded (British Health care Committee, 2010). However, it is advisable to take some measures to curb obvious causes of voluntary illnesses. References Stretch, B., 2002. BTEC national health studies. London: Heinemann. British Medical Association., 2012. Medical ethics today: the BMA’s handbook of law and ethics. New Jersey: Wiley and sons. James, C. & Balding, J., 2006. World yearbook of education: health education. New York: Taylor & Francis. Waters, E. & Swinburn, B., 2010. Preventing childhood obesity. London: John Wiley and sons. Great Britain Parliament. House of Commons. Health Committee., 2010. Commissioning: Written Evidence. London: The Stationery Office. Sergeant, H., 2003. Managing not to manage. London: Centre of Policies Studies. Britton, J.,2004. ABC of smoking cessation. London: John Wiley and sons. Green, J. & Labonte, R., 2008. Critical perspectives in public health. New York: Taylor & Francis. Barron, K., 2009. Health inequalities: Written evidence. London: The stationery office. Kirby, M., 2000. Sociology in perspective. London: Heinemann. Davies, P., 2008. The NHS handbook 2008/09. Manchester: The NHS confederation. Lilley, R., 2003. The insider’s guide to the NHS: how it works and sometimes doesn’t. Oxford: Radcliffe Publishing. Klein, R., 2010. The new politics of NHS. Oxford: Radcliffe publishing. Petit-Zeman, S., 2005. Doctor, what’s wrong?: Making the NHS human again. London: Routledge. Berridge, V. & Strong, P., 2002. AIDS and contemporary history. 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