Humanism and Healthcare

Healthcare Systems are at a turning point. They need a revival of the spirit of the Enlightenment and humanistic values.

The philosophy of humanism has been concerned for around two and a half thousand years with how to achieve the happiness and well-being of individuals and a human coexistence in society in the best way possible. Humanism has been a topic in Ancient Greece and Rome, and the humanism of the Renaissance in the 14th and 15th centuries was still strongly influenced by the educational ideals of ancient culture. We have not yet fully implemented or even forgotten the humanism of the Enlightenment and the humanism of modern times.

The fundamental values of humanism are now enshrined in almost all national constitutions, including respect for human dignity, personality, and life, tolerance, freedom of conscience, and non-violence.

Ironically, national-regulated healthcare systems were already faltering before the pandemic if one looked into the dark corners and narrow niches of general and specific health events. George Orwell’s doublethink confronts us everywhere.

The question of true moral life already preoccupied Socrates, whose motto was »know thyself«. Philosophy also deals with how humans can become aware of their strengths and…