Infant Mortality

Here is some good news: I’ve just read in a report entitled, “Infant Mortality Rate Falls Again" from the Worldwatch Institute, that there has been a continued reduction in child deaths. At 57 deaths of children under age 1 per 1,000 live births, the world’s infant mortality rate is at its lowest level in history. Though that is still 57 deaths too many, it shows that in the midst of all the negative news stories, some things are going right.

The gap between developed and developing regions of the word is also narrowing. However, this is not the time to be complacent. As the Worldwatch Institute reports, the rate at which the gap is closing has slowed. Between 1950 and 1990, infant mortality rates declined by 2% per year, but over the last 15 years the fall has been less than 1% annually.

The HIV/AIDS epidemic and an array of potentially preventable infectious diseases, particularly diarrhea are the main reasons for the lack of progress in reducing child mortality in poorly developed parts of the world, particularly in Eastern and Southern Africa.

And that’s the real point: preventable diseases aren’t being prevented because of the instabilities in many of these parts of the world, so that mothers and infants do not get the prenatal and early-infant care that they need.

All of our work in creating Integrated Medicine and in presenting the burgeoning evidence for the inter-connectedness of all living things has been to help all of us to heal. Then we can apply the same principles throughout the world. A tall order in countries where there is political chaos, but doable nonetheless.

Watch this space.

Contributing to the Greater Good

“If
our entire society is to be revitalized, it will depend on what we as
individual Americans are willing to do on our own, in association with
others, and how willing we are to extend ourselves beyond our own
personal interests.”
–John D. Rockefeller, Jr. (American Industrialist and Philanthropist, 1874-1960)

I
have a fundamental principle about that guides everything that I do:
How will this activity contribute to the greatest good for the greatest
number of people?

“The most important thing in any relationship is not what you get but what you give.”
— Eleanor Roosevelt (American Diplomat, First Lady and Humanitarian, 1884-1962)

Let me give you a very practical example.

Some
years ago, I was the “President of the Junior Doctors’ Mess,” at a
hospital in England. This highfalutin title just meant that I was the
representative and spokesperson for the doctors beginning their
postgraduate training.

It was at a time of considerable
industrial turmoil, and I had to go to a meeting with representatives
from many of the Trade Unions. Many of them were intent on strike
action to achieve some personal gain. It was the first time in my young
life that I had been with people like that. I was a clinician and
scientist intent on finding the solutions for people’s problems and the
fundamental scientific principles that might lead us to the conquest of
major illnesses. They were there to represent the interests of their
members.

I thought that I’d just sit there and listen, but
instead I was asked to say something. I just got up and said what was
on my mind:

“Let’s stop thinking about ourselves and our petty
grievances, and let’s remember why we are all here. We came here to be
part of something bigger than ourselves, we came to help, guide and
support the people who come to this hospital. Let’s start all of our
negotiations from there. Not on who get what, but on who gives what.
Every single discussion has to be driven by this: it does not matter
who is right or who is wrong: how can we, together, improve the quality
of life, the possibilities and potentials of the people around us?”

In
retrospect, it was probably not smart for the youngest person in the
room to try lecturing people. But here’s the odd thing: everyone
started applauding, and an hour later the meeting was over and all
thought of strike action was forgotten. Later one of the older trade
unionists and a self-avowed communist told me that he wanted to find
fault with what I’d said, but he couldn’t.  To which I replied, “Surely
even communism is ultimately based on the idea of creating a the
greatest happiness for the greatest number of people.” He agreed.

It
got me thinking about something that you might like to consider: isn’t
the key to successful negotiation to start from the position: “what’s
in it for everyone and for the greater good?” Yes, of course you
negotiate for what you want, but why not add this perspective to
anything that you are trying to negotiate. Whether it’s a trip to the
mall, a dinner date or a multi-million dollar deal, wouldn’t that work
well in your life?

“Thousands
of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the
candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being
shared.”
–The
Buddha (a.k.a. “The Awakened”, a.k.a. Siddhartha Gautama, Indian
Religious Figure and Founder of Buddhism, c.563 B.C.E. – c.483 B.C.E.)

Technorati tags: Negotation Transpersonal perspective

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About Me

I really don’t much like talking about myself. But everyone tells me that I have to write something personal.

So here goes!

I am a physician who has practiced integrated/holistic medicine since the late 1970s. I am also a specialist in internal and metabolic medicine, endocrinology, neurology and psychiatry. And no, I’m not a hundred years old: it’s just that I was a bit of a Doogie Howser!

I was once described at a meeting with one word: "Iconoclast!" Which is probably not wrong.

I live in the US, but graduated in Medicine in the United Kingdom. Apart from the medical degree, I have an advanced degree in Physiology, another in Biochemistry, and a doctorate in Endocrinology. I have the privilege of being a Member of both the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Psychiatrists in the UK.

After 14 years in internal and metabolic medicine and endocrinology, I needed a new challenge and decided to get some more training, this time in Psychiatry. Things then moved very fast. After seven years on Faculty at the University of Pennsylvania, I moved down South, and have now moved away from individual treatment in favor of helping people reach their full potential.

For there has been another life: I have had an odd awareness of my ability to sense people’s "energy," personal history and Path since childhood: a sometimes painful gift. Yet also uncommonly accurate. I’m sure that everyone has this ability and I think it’s a shame when people brag about something so natural. I have spent many years helping others uncover their own abilities and to support and nurture them as they appear.

Apart from the medical credentials, I’ve been an acupuncturist since 1981 and did my advanced training in China; a homeopath since 1985; Reiki Master for almost ten years and teacher of meditation, t’ai chi and qigong since 1986.

Over the last 35 years, I’ve been heavily involved in the development of a new model of integrated medicine. Several years ago we made an astonishing discovery: that some of the time-honored Laws of Healing were evolving, which lead me to work with and discuss all of this with Nobel Laureates, intuitives and some of the finest spiritual leaders of our time.

I had the incredible honor of being the Scientific Chairman and a Trustee of the Prince of Wales’ Foundation for Integrated Health and Chairman of the Research Council for Complementary Medicine.

I’ve spent decades researching and practicing different orthodox and unorthodox methods of healing and hundreds of ways of maintaining health and wellness. Despite all that, several years ago I developed a potentially serious illness myself, which was eradicated with first rate medical care, qigong, homeopathy and three prayer groups. Which was the most important I don’t know! I took this to be a loud wakeup call, and changed the direction of my life. The key words of my work have always been empowerment, enrichment, integrity and integration. So I’ve recently started to move away from helping individuals to helping groups of people manifest their own Inner Light or, as we also call it, in more scientific language, their "Informational Matrix".

As a part of that, I am producing a series of books and CDs. The first is "Healing Meaning and Purpose: Using the Magical Power of the Emerging Laws of Life." More books and CDs will be coming out in the very near future.

I advise on treatment and lecture on serious mental illness, neuroendocrine topics and personal empowerment throughout the world, having been a Visiting Professor, Guest Lecturer or Keynote Speaker in 44 countries in just the last five years. My lectures, speeches, seminars and workshops have been presented to more than a quarter of a million people, and I’m a regular guest on television and radio shows throughout the world.

I remain an active researcher, teacher, writer, professional speaker and broadcaster.

I really do believe that we can learn a great deal by studying the writings of the geniuses of the past. So I like some of the classics, and I’ve constructed a quotations database with just shy of 30,000 entries. Many of them not at all run of the mill, and really inspirational, so I plan to share them when time permits.