Museums and Italian Health (SOC 490)

     For the past few weeks for our Sociology class, we have been focusing on several things. The American and Italian health care systems are different, and we need to ask ourselves why they are different and how we can learn from the comparisons. What can we, as Americans, take from the Roman approach to improve our health? We were also given something else to ponder over, and that is whether or not our health is something which we have control over. As part of the class, we visited the Museum of the Mind and the National History Museum of the Medical Arts. After visiting these museums, we could better understand part of the Italian health care system.

A bed which used to bed in the mental institution in the Museum of the Mind

     When asked the question of whether or not health care is something which we have control over, my answer is yes. We are in control of our bodies and what we eat, how much we exercise, and how we treat our bodies is in our control. In addition, the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World states that man should take care of, not only himself but his brothers. "If one is in extreme necessity, he has the right to procure for himself what he needs our of the riches of others...'Feed the man dying of hunger, because if you have not fed him, you have killed him.'" Your health is determined by how you live your life, but at the same time, we cannot control when we die or when we procure certain things such as illnesses or diseases. In the Museum of the Mind, we had a tour of what used to be a mental institution in Rome. Some of the patients we learned, were entered into the institution because they were orphans, and had no mental illness. Though, when they left, and depending on how long they lived there, they left with a mental illness of some kind. This is sad, yet it shows us what can happen to someone if they are treated as if they have an illness, even though they don't.

National Museum of the Medical Arts

     On Monday, we visited the National History Museum of the Medical Arts in Rome. I found this museum interesting because it preserved many things that used to be used in hospitals long ago in Italy. It also had many things such as skeletons and wax models which were used to teach medical students. It was interesting to see the tools they used to use in hospitals and the differences between then and now. One of the main differences is technology, though it amazes me how much they knew even back then.
     In Italy, there is universal health care. In other words, if you are an Italian citizen, you are guaranteed basic health care. Statistically, Italy's life expectancy is 81 years while the United States' is 78. Some people also say that the U.S. health care system needs to change and that we should adopt a universal health care policy, similar to Italy's. Ben Furnas, for example, writes in Opposing Viewpoints that "the quality of health care in the United States has been declining...health care reform could lead to billions of dollars in savings." Italians have a different way of life. It is rare to see an overweight Italian. The foods they eat are also fresher and usually healthier. Though their way of life is not perfect, there are many things that we can learn from the way Italians live.