Healthcare in America: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly Dr. James P. Cole, Jr.

Over a half-million COVID patients in the U.S. have died within the past year. But despite a significant decline in newly diagnosed cases, COVID remains an ongoing problem. Several new viral mutations have given rise to troubling new COVID variants which may precipitate another surge unless we remain vigilant and get vaccinated as quickly as possible. The disinformation campaign remains a real problem with many conspiracy theories clouding the truth about COVID and the vaccines available to us. Dr. Cole addresses all of these issues in this podcast. 

Alternative medicine has become extremely popular these past few decades, yet there is very little collaboration between those who practice traditional western-style healthcare and those who practice the alternative disciplines. Dr. Cole covers all of the major alternative topics including naturopathy, herbal therapy, and spinal manipulation. He evaluates the quality of the evidence which may or may not support them, he discusses some of the concerns all who seek alternative therapies should be aware of, and he articulates why integrative healthcare – rather than alternative healthcare – may be the best route for those who wish to pursue something other than traditional healthcare.

For as long as there have been substances that alter the mood, mind, and body, there have been those who abuse them. Over 20 million Americans fall into this category and about 200,000 people die annually as a result of ongoing substance abuse. For every fatal overdose, there are countless additional non-fatal overdoses and many of them have tragic consequences. The ongoing abuse of alcohol, cocaine, benzodiazepines, methamphetamines, and opioids continues to plague our nation. Dr. Cole discusses the biological, psychological, and social contributors to this extensive problem and elaborates on how healthcare agencies are working to combat the issue.

We have a serious mental healthcare crisis in this country. Perhaps one in every five Americans suffers from some sort of major mental health condition, yet mental illness remains a taboo subject that many patients and even health care providers simply do not wish to discuss. The unnecessary stigma of mental illness, the lack of available outpatient and inpatient psychiatric services, and the insufficient numbers of Psychiatrists in this country all contribute to the ongoing problem. In this podcast, Dr. Cole enlightens us to several of the common mental health disorders – anxiety, depression, PTSD, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. Through greater awareness of the prevalence of mental illness, increased social acceptance of this historically shunned area of human health, improved access to care, and better treatment options, perhaps we may become an overall healthier nation. In addition, Dr. Cole applauds the research scientists who have spent the better part of the past two decades conducting mRNA research leading to the new COVID-19 vaccines, detailing how they work and a few common misconceptions. 

Dr. Cole has spent the last eight months as the Medical Specialist Advisor in the COVID Incident Command Center for the hospital he works at, and he returns for a November 2020 update about COVID-19. This episode covers a variety of topics:
(3:33) Why we should care about COVID-19 morbidity, and not just mortality 
(8:18) How hospitals have responded and what happens when they're overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients 
(14:30) What should you do if you had close contact with someone who has COVID-19? 
(20:15) What treatment for those hospitalized currently looks like 
(22:44) Are doctors and hospitals "getting rich off of COVID?" [Answer: NO] 
(25:53) Wear a mask, and continue to social distance 
Dr. Cole is most specifically referring to information about northern Illinois, but the vast majority of this information -- including about hospital response -- is relevant to everyone in the United States.

Dr. Cole elaborates on the relatively unhealthy status of our nation. There are plenty of reasons why so many Americans have such poor health and often live with out of control medical conditions. Whereas the healthcare system shares a portion of the blame, far too many Americans are their own worst enemy and seemingly choose to remain unhealthy.