Zbigniew Piekarski discusses our glorification of the drug culture

"Poland doesn't have to be rich; so long as it's Catholic."

- Henryk Goryszewski

Nothing is more noble and deserving of respect than the work of healing the human mind and body. It is the crown of our Judeo-Christian civilization.

Paradoxically, the debilitating effects of systematic abuses of power and privilege are imposed on youthful idealism and the wish to serve others. And nowhere is this better seen than in the "free" national health systems of many countries.

The mistaken belief that the state can be a universal provider has nurtured a mammoth bureaucracy, born of politics and funded by legalised theft, which sits in judgement of what is needed, how it will be provided and decides the "going rate" for the job.

As the demand for medical services is practically unlimited and the supply, in terms of labour and materials, is limited, services must be rationed and allocated by decree - with compensation for producers administered by authority.

Market forces could allocate resources promptly and fairly, according to the value judgements of all participants. But, because the whole system has become a battleground between competing interest groups, it is open to arbitrariness, abuse, maltreatment and corruption.

Initially, medical practitioners themselves were in the forefront of radical change and in the betterment of conditions for the populace. The British Medical Association, founded in 1832, almost immediately became involved in the struggle for reform. It took a leading role in influencing legislation on public health matters, including: the registration of midwives; the exposure of "quack medicine"; the treatment of inebriates; mental health legislation; housing and factory legislation; coroner's law and death certification; and the regulation of baby farming.

But that was at a time when private property and personal responsibility were the dominant political and social forces. Once the state took it upon itself to provide a universal and free service, then the objective of the Association changed to "maintaining the interests of the medical profession", as they became wage labourers assessed by the ever-watchful eyes of a politicised bureaucracy.

After WWII, the expansion of the "free" health systems began in earnest. As it was free, it belonged to everyone and was accountable to no one. With the prospect of limitless funding, new pseudo-professions began to appear in order to alleviate the ever-increasing maladies debilitating the happiness of 20th century human being. At the core of this expansion lies a virulent malady discovered by a veterinary surgeon, who explained the lack of milk production in one herd of Austrian cows. The malady was called "stress".

The pharmaceutical industry was also in an expansionary mode. At the turn of the century, Felix Hoffman rediscovered the curative properties of a substance created from the bark of willow trees and Bayer was born. Aspirin became an instant success, as it disproved the dictum of the Catholic Church that human beings must live in pain as a penance for original sin.

Soon pharmaceutical companies were producing pills to alleviate every symptom that was diagnosed by the medical profession. In fact, they assisted the medical profession in diagnosing new ailments and providing instant solutions whilst, at the same time, raising the profitability of their businesses.

Governments also benefited. They created bodies staffed with highly qualified individuals, who tested the solutions before they were made available to the general public. Unfortunately, this did not stop mistakes from being made. In the 1950's a prescribed drug given to women - in order to prevent nausea and insomnia during the early stages of pregnancy - started to produce horrific birth defects in children. It was called Thalidomide.

The companies who manufactured the drug, the agencies that approved it, and the doctors who prescribed it all denied responsibility, until the overwhelming burden of proof - provided by the countless victims - forced the withdrawal of the drug in 1962. It was withdrawn five years after the birth of the first deformed baby and in that time it had affected thousands of children in 46 nations.

This changed the marketing practices of the pharmaceutical companies. From then on, doctors were no longer handed a brown envelope stuffed with money as a reward for recommending particular drugs: instead they were invited to lavish conferences held in exotic locations. Neither did it alter our dependence on drugs to cure every malady, real or imagined.

The health system in Poland, just like the "free" health systems of other countries, is bound to decay on all levels unless market forces are allowed to function openly and without hindrance. Highly gifted individuals within the system are already opting out. As more physicians leave and enter into private contracts with their patients, the system will deteriorate further. The rich will have a choice, but the poor will be shackled to a "free" system.

As the system deteriorates, the interest groups - whose very survival depends upon the system continuing - are likely to use ever more determined coercion to try and force the producers into increasing cycles of hypocrisy, corruption and the loss of ideals.

It is already happening in the USA. An increasing number of individuals are purchasing prescription drugs in Canada, because they are much cheaper. Yet, the Governor of Illinois was prohibited from purchasing cheap Canadian drugs for state workers by the Food and Drugs Administration, an agency of the federal government. But, despite the power of interest groups, the choices that individuals have are increasing and the power of all leviathans, particularly drug marketers, is diminishing.

Polish doctors make the same number of mistakes as any other group of doctors anywhere else in the world. A 1999 study in the USA estimated that deaths due to medical mistakes were probably higher than those resulting from traffic accidents.

The main difference between the Polish situation and sensible action is that in Poland, brown envelopes are given before the operation takes place. This shows a religious conviction and a belief in miracles, as an honest capitalist gives the brown envelope after a successful outcome - not before.