What price chronic illness?

An examination of the salient arguments in the debate over the high cost of health care points out serious omissions in the current discussion. Conclusions regarding these omissions & other problems stem from a study concerning the important sociological & organizational aspects of a hospital staff's interaction with hospitalized patients whose care involves the use of medical machinery, field observation for which was conducted over a 3-year period in various wards of diverse hospitals: Ur, suburban, military, teaching, & city-county; in addition, open-ended interviews were conducted with hospital personnel (N not given). Findings show that one major contributor to high health care costs is the increase in chronic & unresolvable illnesses, particularly in industrially developed nations. Analysis of the data provides a picture of: the changed nature of illness & health care; the qualities that differentiate chronic from acute illnesses; the effect of the prevalence of chronic illness on the tremendous growth of medical technology & attendant specialization; & the consequences of a proliferation of medical options. Modified AA.