NELSON LEBO: Ounce of prevention worth a pound of cure

Nelson Lebo Photo/File

THANKS for the great feedback on last week's column.

Despite the vindictive image of Wanganui that was encapsulated in the initial response to Duncan Garner's visit to our beautiful city, there are indeed many thoughtful, reflective and open-minded residents.

I admit that my conservative views do not suit all readers and I apologise for forcing them upon you week after week. I'm the guy who spent four months working on drainage around his house just before we were hit by a once-in-85-year rain event.

Above all else I believe an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If you have been brought up on the metric system instead of imperial measurements, here is a translation: 28.3g of prevention is worth 453.6g of cure. Doesn't exactly have the same ring to it, eh?

"Prevention" has the same type of prefix as "proactive". Even "prefix" has that same ... prefix. Any way you slice it, it's about addressing an issue before it becomes a problem. One great example has been our community's long and sustained effort to raise awareness about the likely problems that will result if the Government signs onto the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA).

In late 2013 I contacted Chronicle editor Mark Dawson about writing a piece on the TPPA. He gave the green light and as far as I know it was the first appearance of the secretly negotiated treaty in our local press. Here is what I wrote: "Fortunately for democracy, some material from the TPPA has been leaked, including a 95-page excerpt published by WikiLeaks in Mid-November. Following that leak, the Herald (November 14, 2013, NZ WikiLeaks Scoop) reported that information in the excerpt includes disputes between New Zealand and US negotiators on issues of internet freedom, industrial innovation, ownership of endemic plants and animals, and, near and dear to my heart, access to affordable medicines.

"From the Herald, 'A large section reveals the battle between the US pharmaceutical lobby and countries such as New Zealand that want to continue to buy cheaper generic medicines'.

"In order to dissect this sentence we need to know a couple of facts: 1) the utmost duty of a corporation is to return profits to its shareholders; 2) the US - where corporations have used lobbyists to sculpt health care policy - has the most expensive health care system in the world while ranking close to 40th in performance by the World Health Organisation; 3) New Zealand health care remains reasonably priced in part due to the ability to bulk buy generic medicines.

"What this means for Whanganui is that our already strapped health services would become even more so. For example, the funds now available to pay a doctor may have to be shuffled to cover the increased costs of medicines. Along with the dollars vacuumed away, we would lose a valuable human being who lives in our city, owns a home, pays rates, and buys local products. Every dollar associated with that doctor's salary would be wisked away to New York, San Francisco, or Hartford. We lose, they win."

Last week the Prime Minister admitted that under the TPPA some medicines would cost the country more. If only he'd read my column two years ago he would have been way ahead of the game!

Without the assistance of a crystal ball I was able to see the future because I am a strong believer in research, data, patterns, and evidence-based decision-making. Despite what radicals might think about secret trade deals, climate change, income inequality, and boosting regional economies, I'll stick to my Ounce-of-Prevention ideology metric system be damned!

-There is a march and rally today over TPPA, gather at Silver Ball sculpture at the riverside for 1.15pm rally at Majestic Square.

-Dr Nelson Lebo is an eco design professional specialising in new residential building, renovation, and healthy homes - 022 635 0868; theecoschool@gmail.com.