Hiroshima John Hersey

“They still wonder why they lived when so many others died. Each of them counts many small items of chance or volition—a step taken in time, a decision to go indoors, catching one streetcar instead of the next that spared him. And now each knows that in the act of survival he lived a dozen lives and saw more death than he ever thought he would see. At the time, none of them knew anything.” This quote is from the book Hiroshima by John Hersey, at the time everyone was confused by what had just happened. Many were injured and could not get help. No one knew how to help any one because the US used a new type of weapon. When the United States dropped “Little Boy” on Hiroshima it opened up a whole new chapter in medicine. We were perplexed by this
new chapter and with that came human rights issues with access to medical care because after the bomb was dropped, access to medical treatment was very limited, all they had were the doctors that were not injured, and many people suffered more than they needed too because of the limited access to medical treatment.
Access to medical care relates to real life issues because if people don't have access to medical care they will become sick or an injury won’t heal correctly.
Access to medical care was an issue when the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima because no one knew what the effects of the A-Bomb had on the city and the people. Also Japan's government should have stepped in and sent help to their own city but America also shouldn't have bombed a hospital. But in America's defense, they did not know the full extent of damage that the bomb could create. According to the Geneva Conventions “All warring parties are required to collect and care for civilians under their power who have been wounded or are sick. Aid workers and hospitals must be spared from warfare. Aid convoys and humanitarian equipment also should not be attacked.” Even though America Bombed Hiroshima, America shouldn’t have bombed the civilians. America should’ve bombed the civilians because according to the Geneva Conventions “[All] Warring parties must distinguish between civilians and combatants while conducting war in order to spare civilian lives and property. Civilian groups and individuals are protected from attacks as long as they are not participating in the fighting. Attacks may be made only against military objectives. Collective punishment of an entire population is forbidden.” The Americans shouldn’t have bombed the civilians because they were not participating in the war, if the US was to choose another
target in Japan it could have been a military base.
Not only did the people of Hiroshima suffer then but the people of North Korea are suffering today by not having access to medical care. According to North Korean Health System Crumbling as Shortages and Sanctions Bite “North Koreans interviewed in China paint a grimmer picture of medical conditions across their country: citing broken equipment, declining treatment standards and widespread self medication.” This Quotation is important because it shows just what the medical care is in North Korea and how they have broken equipment. They also have people self medicating because medicine is too expensive despite the promise for universal healthcare. Not only have they had broken equipment and self medicating people, this issue of health care has lead to many other issues. The Issues of not having health care follows “The downstream effects are food shortages, a shortage of domestically produced pharmaceuticals, breakdown of the sanitation system, shortage of medical supplies, a resurgence of infectious disease, and ultimately a rise in mortality and morbidity.” This one issue has a snowball effect and it will just keep growing unless someone does something about it.
The United States does not have a big issue with the issue of getting medical care, but there are still rules the US has to follow when it comes to the health of Americans.
According to the UN universal declaration of human rights “Everyone has the right to equal access to public service in his country.” So the United States has to give everyone equal access to hospitals and any other public services that are offered. “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.” The quote above is from the Universal Declaration of human rights and it saying we have to help each person get to the standard of living that is adequate for health. “Cost still poses a major barrier to coverage for the uninsured. In 2015, 46% of uninsured adults said that the primary reason they were uninsured was because it was too expensive, making it the most common reason cited for being uninsured” The information above comes from The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, it's basically saying that people don't have insurance because they can't afford it. Even though the Affordable Care Act made health insurance more affordable for some, others still can't afford
it.
As you can clearly see through the examples that has been presented to you access to medical care can be and sometimes difficult to obtain. In this very situation it was truly a struggle to get medical care because not only was there anyone willing to enter Hiroshima after the bomb was dropped, but everyone who had practiced medicine there was dead, injured, or trying to help the ones who needed it. Through the research and with the examples presented to you it is evident that it is necessary to have medical care. What if we didn't have access to medical care like we do today? We would be like the people in North Korea who are self medicating simply because medications are too expensive. It’s disturbing to know that but image if medication was less expensive, how much would the death toll go down?