BIOBUSINESS

1. For starters, the discussion question that Yukai posted after his presentation was whether we as users will consume healthcare products that have not gone through any sort of human/animal testing. Indeed no one in class could give a definite answer because we have been living so comfortably with the ignorance of this ethical issue. The society has been persistently discussing this topic of testing products on living subjects but are we prepared to forego this testing? Are scientific reports enough for our consideration?
I am guilty myself and i hope there comes a day when live subjects testing won't be necessary.

2. Reading 4 was particularly an eye-opener in terms of the 'disruptive innovation' and how it impacts healthcare. It exposed the current stagnant state of healthcare systems, where the dominant players are controlling all the operations. I agree with the writer on the point that disruptive innovations are what engineer progress but the dominant players are just contented with sustaining their current innovations. On top of that, they have conspired with other huge players such as hospitals, doctors to set up barriers to entry for these 'disruptive innovations'. This shouldn't be the case, isn't healthcare a product for the greater good and all actions should be leading to it? One good example is US  where healthcare are only provided to those who have insurance, those who do not can only wait till their health deteriorate drastically. In order to fulfill MDGs as mentioned in reading 1, we need these 'disruptive innovations' now. They are cheaper, more convenient and cater to the larger masses. Dominant players should start caring less about their pockets and think about the greater good like they should.

3. In relation to my previous point, we have to care for the excluded populations of the world. In reading 1, it was mentioned that 1 in 10 babies do not survive in developing countries such as Pakistan and Cambodia as compared to 1 in 250 in Singapore. This is a especially disturbing statistic as we can see the disparity in healthcare. In Singapore, we have the 'disease of excess' where we have too many choices available to us and as a result consume much more where it is the 'disease of deprivation' elsewhere. We can only hope that in the coming future, healthcare trends can include these less fortunate countries because they also deserve the same healthcare we enjoy.