Health ATM of 2020

Congress is not an ATM.

Robert Byrd (1917-2010), U.S. Senator from West Virginia

If predicting  disease and preserving your health is important, then ATM stands for A Tell-All Machine.

Anonymous

In the future, how will we be able to predict disease,  prevent its development,   assess your health, and save time and money for yourself and the U.S. taxpayer? 

That is the question for the day.    The answer is  the Health ATM.  

Technology Already There

The technology is already there.  After you answer a  simple questionnaire,   the ATM will record you rweight, height, pulse, and other physical measurements,  an optical scanner will test your blood components, and the  health ATM will objectively show your overall  health and  tell you whether you need to be seen by a doctor or nurse practitioner.   The ATM will list health professionals in your area who are versed in health evaluation.

There will, of course, be a fee, just as there is with traditional ATM banking machines, where you pay cash to get cash. Only in Health ATMs, which will be conveniently located in multiple retail and public outlets,   you will  pay cash for a health evaluation. 

It will up to you whether or not to see a physician for followup.   There will, of course, have to be business arrangements between the Health ATM manufacturers, the outlets, and the physicians to whom the ATM lists.  For you, the costs  will be modest,   perhaps in the $20 to  $30 range, and the Health ATMs will save you time and money, and give you objective health information, peace of mind if your health is good, and solid reasons for seeing a physician if your health is awry.

The information will  be confidential.  And you will have the option of changing your behavior and repeating the test later to see if your health improves. Evaluating and maintaining your health will be  your responsibility. The Health ATM will rely on your common sense and your response to commonsensical health information.   If you want to see your doctor without going through the ABM,  I recommend you do so.  Nothing beats human interaction with someone who understands health and disease.

Tweet:   You will soon  be entering your health data into a Health ATM machine to save time and money and to get an objective view of your health.