Weakland R G
Health Prog. 1991 Apr;72(3):48-52.
In this moment of crisis, Catholic healthcare leaders must seek root causes and thorough solutions to the pressures of rising costs and the grave question of access to healthcare. The first question is whether the system can be fixed or if a more radical approach is needed. To reach a solution, government, business, hospitals, and physicians must sit down at a common table to debate the issue. In 1981 the bishops outlined a series of values or principles that should characterize the U.S. healthcare system, including treating the whole person and providing access for all. These values have characterized Catholic healthcare facilities in the past decades and should not be lost in the present crisis and in the decisions being made for the future. Today, Catholic healthcare leaders have a broadened understanding of Catholic identity and the need to continually probe what that means. They realize Catholic identity is more than a few moral codes; it is a broader concern about the way in which healing takes place. Another gain is the development of lay vocations, but these are often restricted and should be more fully developed. In conjunction with this concept, we need to see hospitals as belonging to the whole Church in terms of its mission and thus the responsibility of the entire body of believers. Finally, a new image is needed concerning how care is provided. We need to bring prevention and care closer together, preventing duplication of major services and making certain basic services available to all.
在当前这场危机时刻，天主教医疗保健领域的领导者们必须探寻成本不断上升压力的根源以及医疗保健可及性这一严峻问题的全面解决方案。首要问题是该体系能否得到修复，还是需要采取更为激进的方法。为达成解决方案，政府、企业、医院和医生必须共同坐下来讨论这个问题。1981年，主教们概述了一系列应成为美国医疗保健体系特征的价值观或原则，包括治疗完整的人以及为所有人提供医疗服务。在过去几十年里，这些价值观一直是天主教医疗保健机构的特征，在当前危机以及为未来所做的决策中不应被摒弃。如今，天主教医疗保健领域的领导者们对天主教身份有了更广泛的理解，也认识到需要不断探究其意义所在。他们意识到天主教身份不仅仅是几条道德准则；它更是对治疗方式的更广泛关注。另一个成果是世俗使命的发展，但这些往往受到限制，应该得到更充分的发展。与此概念相关联，我们需要从使命角度将医院视为整个教会的一部分，因此这是全体信徒的责任。最后，在医疗服务提供方式方面需要一个新的形象。我们需要将预防和治疗更紧密地结合起来，避免主要服务的重复，并确保所有人都能获得某些基本服务。
