Between Illness and Health: What Happened to Convalescence?
Modern medicine has forgotten the transition between sickness and health. Worse, patients are often discharged for reasons other than their own welfare and recovery. Governed by the profit motive, insurance reimbursement and government guidelines the last person on the list of priorities is the patient. However historically that transition between illness and recovery, sickness and health was recognised as critical in re-entering home and work spaces. What was this convalescent stage and how did it improve outcomes? Why did modern medicine sacrifice this integral part of the healing process.