ABSTRACT
Modern medicine is founded upon a faulty philosophical premise that isolates body and mind, and therefore leaves the patient out of the equation. That is why clinical medicine so often misses the point in what is actually happening between real patients and real doctors. Stories become the central currency of doctoring. Listening to stories, interpreting them, recognising when to 'extract'' from them sufficient material to constitute a disease, and take lead responsibility for defining that; and alternatively emphasising integration of the narrative within the context of the person's life. Consumers are individuals, who go out to get products for themselves. An understanding of the 'human effect' should make it clear to each patient that the product is health and its success is largely a part of themselves and their own self-healing effect. Clinical standards will always be important and the new clinical governance agenda will accelerate their improvement.
