Itinerant Surgery: its effect on local development

ABSTRACT

The cost of any goods or service is the amount of resources given up in order to obtain it. A service is considered free when the recipient does not give up any resource in exchange for obtaining it, but is free only to the recipient, because someone else pays for it. Itinerant surgery is often justified on the grounds that it is free to the recipient, and this is considered good. But compromises in standards often appear acceptable because the service is free and, after all. "beggars can't be choosers". A discussion of monetary matters borders on the unethical and is traditionally avoided when medical issues are considered, but cost is probably the most limiting factor in the provision of health care in the West Indies. If the itinerant surgeons provides the cost of the surgery it aids the community economically in the short run. In the long run the community will be better able to support its need for surgery and will be more developed if it has its own surgeon. "Give a man fish and he'll eat for a day; teach a man to fish and he'll eat for longtime."(AU) [truncated]