Nostr notes by MedSchlr

📢 Calling health sciences, medicine & public health ...

2026-03-06T21:35:51Z

📢 Calling health sciences, medicine & public health researchers!

A student-led research project (ethics approved) is looking for your expertise.

🔬 Study: Trust & Centralization in Health Sciences — Professional Perspectives on the Publishing Landscape

You qualify if you:
✅ Are active in health sciences, medicine, or public health research
✅ Have authored or co-authored 2+ peer-reviewed publications
✅ Are proficient in English

Your insights on academic publishing matter. See the flier for details on how to participate!

This is a brilliant paper that highlights some major downfalls of ...

2026-01-23T02:40:50Z

In reply to nevent1q…ev05
_________________________

This is a brilliant paper that highlights some major downfalls of empirical research today. Building on the discussion of this paper what is also needed is wider discourse of the meaning of the findings of studies. For example, how can peer-view happen in a more transparent way? How can various stakeholder groups, researchers and the public etc. discuss research findings more objectively?

Right, the scientific method is a tool used to examine truth in a ...

2026-01-23T00:12:37Z

In reply to nevent1q…4kd6
_________________________

Right, the scientific method is a tool used to examine truth in a way that can be replicated. Findings may or may not be generalizable to a particular group or individual. It’s an approximation of truth where probabilities weight in certain direction of association but there are often many contextual and confounding variables that need to be considered when interpreting the outcomes of a scientific study.

Student projects are are in full swing this semester among the ...

2026-01-22T17:00:15Z

Student projects are are in full swing this semester among the MedSchlr team!

1. Undergraduate health aging and society thesis examining researchers’ perceptions of MedSchlr and the peer -reviewed landscape. (Ethics proposal with the local university is in review).
2. Undergraduate nursing student set to examine local bitcoin merchant on financial and overall well-being (Ethics proposal with the local university is in review).
3. Master global health student drafting ideas for a scholarly paper examining bitcoin, Nostr, MedSchlr.
4. Students working on new ideas for Dream Grad Academy website refresh.
5. Drafting abstracts for consideration at academic presentations.

Management of blood pressure is vital for overall health and ...

2026-01-19T05:05:14Z

Management of blood pressure is vital for overall health and well-being. Lifestyle changes can positively or negatively impact blood pressure. Previous literature indicates, diet, exercise, stress management, sleep, fasting, vitamins etc can help prevent and maintain blood pressure as noted in paper below. In persistent and life threatening cases of elevated blood pressure, medication and prompt medical attention may be needed.

What can we learn from previous evidence and past experience in the management of blood pressure or high blood pressure?

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10713007/

James Boyle, "Mertonianism Unbound? Imagining Free, ...

2025-12-16T13:08:42Z

James Boyle, "Mertonianism Unbound? Imagining Free, Decentralized Access to Most Cultural and Scientific Material

https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/faculty_scholarship/1664/

Excellent read for understanding how to build a new knowledge commons in the medical and health sciences.

quoting
note1pvd…83nt
My key takeaways similar to yours:

User-Centered Design in Academic Systems

"Academics from within the discipline should be included in the design process, so that the system fits their patterns of work, and conceptual categories, rather than being imposed based on some alien categorical scheme."
— James Boyle, "Mertonianism Unbound? Imagining Free, Decentralized Access to Most Cultural and Scientific Material"

This principle extends beyond academics. For MedSchlr to truly serve as a knowledge commons, we must involve a range of users—including the public and the Nostr community—in co-creating features that meet their needs for accessing, understanding, and engaging with health research.

Open Architecture as Innovation Engine

"Wherever possible, design the system to run with open content, on open protocols, to be potentially available to the largest possible number of users, and to accept the widest possible range of experimental modifications from users who can themselves determine the development of the technology. Then sit back and wait to see what emerges."
— James Boyle (citing Eric Von Hippel's work on user-based innovation)

This collaborative approach—combining open access with decentralized protocols—challenges us to question the centralized architecture of existing structures and guides our development philosophy for MedSchlr.

Latest Update from the MedSchlr team: ...

2025-12-15T19:00:28Z

Latest Update from the MedSchlr team:

https://geyser.fund/project/medschlr/posts/view/5381?mtm_campaign=project-share&mtm_keyword=medschlr-post-5381&mtm_source=visitor&mtm_medium=geyser&mtm_content=post-share-button

True. There are inherent limitations and job functions that would ...

2025-11-28T04:32:15Z

In reply to nevent1q…uyq0
_________________________

True. There are inherent limitations and job functions that would dissuade certain providers to accept Bitcoin payments over others. The fact that this topic is being researched is interesting for those who are keen on understanding adoption trends.

Dentists are leading the charge in bitcoin payments!🦷₿ New ...

2025-11-27T19:14:54Z

Dentists are leading the charge in bitcoin payments!🦷₿

New research reveals a trend in healthcare: more dentists are embracing bitcoin than any other medical professionals, with doctors, and alternative medicine following behind.

🤔 Is this just the beginning of a bitcoin revolution in healthcare?

The study used geospatial data from BTC Map to track medium of exchange trends.

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40854-025-00871-z

@npub1nkn…3chw your point is well made. Doing a quick search of ...

2025-11-23T16:24:55Z

In reply to nevent1q…w30x
_________________________

El Guirri (npub1nkn…3chw) your point is well made. Doing a quick search of the literature, it is evident that numerous studies that appear publicly look at vaccine safety/efficacy and vaccine hesitancy among persons with Multiple Sclerosis with less evidence exploring the direct link between MS and vaccines.

Furthermore, from the quick search using Google Scholar from 2020-present, one review, Principi and Esposito (2020) state “some vaccines may induce an autoimmune neurological disease, no definitive demonstration of a potential role of vaccines in causing autoimmune neurological syndromes is presently available.” Additionally, Stefanou et al. (2023) systematic review and meta-analysis on COVID-19 vaccines and patients with MS, shows “no risk of relapse or serious adverse events” among the data analyzed in the study.

To your point about the need for cohort studies over time and the gap in the literature, Sefanou et al’s study does not focus on previous vaccination and onset of MS overtime. Rather Stefanou et al, makes the conclusion, “these safety data provide compelling pro-vaccination arguments for MS patients.”

The underlying thesis to Stefanou et al, possibly comes from a germ theory premise. Instead of asking could there be a way to prevent risk of the infectious disease by strengthening the terrain, a persons condition, before advising a vaccine?

This type of thinking is not weighted enough in medical and public health science. Also, this might be why the true causes of many disease are not identified in the scientific literature lending to an endless hamster wheel of ongoing research calling for more study. When we could be advancing the science more from a root cause perspective.

Note: These thoughts come from a preliminary search. Maybe there is more robust data out there on these topics?

Principi and Esposito (2020)
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2020.00361

Stefanou et al. (2023)
https://doi.org/10.1177/13524585221150881

@npub1nkn…3chw possibly similar to what you have found, here is ...

2025-11-20T19:39:10Z

In reply to nevent1q…qcjl
_________________________

El Guirri (npub1nkn…3chw) possibly similar to what you have found, here is a meta-analysis showing no association across 140+ studies. Like you mention there are a number of shortcomings. For example, the review doesn’t examine experimental or genetic vaccines. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines9080821

Totally. It’s great to have Nostr as a place where multiple ...

2025-11-20T14:04:12Z

In reply to nevent1q…h7pp
_________________________

Totally. It’s great to have Nostr as a place where multiple ideas and evidence can flow so individuals can grasp information, knowledge, and truth to inform their health journeys.

Looking at Humes work plublished in 1923, we can see that there ...

2025-11-19T17:40:19Z

In reply to nevent1q…ja22
_________________________

Looking at Humes work plublished in 1923, we can see that there might be more to terrain theory and Bechamp’s work than we have historically made to believe. jakewoodhouse (npub1ltz…k4fh) has been discussing this.

Terrain theory points to the importance of keeping the internal body healthy to prevent disease. This means that lifestyle factors and environment are very important. Health like our money should be something that we each individually own and work with healthcare and wellness professionals when needed.

https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.31175004177021&seq=11

What are the potential implications of this when it comes to ...

2025-11-19T14:15:42Z

In reply to nevent1q…5xnc
_________________________

What are the potential implications of this when it comes to treatment and diagnosis?

Completely agree. This brilliant piece explores how ideas flow ...

2025-11-18T02:33:11Z

Completely agree. This brilliant piece explores how ideas flow and connect, as well as the exciting possibility of new knowledge commons built on Nostr.

The potential to 'treat your own thoughts as compost for collective intelligence rather than private property to be protected' really resonates with what we need moving forward in medical and health sciences publishing.

quoting
note1tjp…58j2
Go read liminal 🦠 (npub1m3x…a5sf) 's "Anarchistic Knowledge: The Art of Thinking Without Permission" right now:
https://next-alexandria.gitcitadel.eu/publication/naddr/naddr1qvzqqqr4tqpzphzv6zrv6l89kxpj4h60m5fpz2ycsrfv0c54hjcwdpxqrt8wwlqxqyvhwumn8ghj7enjv4jkccte9eek7anzd96zu6r0wd6qzxmhwden5te0w35x2cmfw3skgetv9ehx7um5wgcjucm0d5q35amnwvaz7tm5dpjkvmmjv4ehgtnwdaehgu339e3k7mgpzpmhxue69uhkummnw3ezumrpdejqzyrhwden5te0dehhxarj9emkjmn9qythwumn8ghj7mn0wd68ytnndamxy6t59e5x7um5qyghwumn8ghj7mn0wd68yv339e3k7mgq83skuctjvd5xjum5d93j66mwdamkcetyvajj6argv5kkzun594hkvtt5dp5ku6mfdenj6amfw35x7at594cx2undd9ehx6t0dcjzn97d

If you've been looking at my notes for the past hour, you'll have seen nearly the entire thing because I couldn't stop highlighting it.

@npub1m3x…a5sf would be cool to have a student do a narrative ...

2025-11-11T16:24:39Z

In reply to nevent1q…9r5s
_________________________

liminal 🦠 (npub1m3x…a5sf) would be cool to have a student do a narrative synthesis of this evidence as a knowledge translation exercise on MedSchlr.

Vitamin D is critical to human health. Many people turn to ...

2025-11-11T15:02:03Z

Vitamin D is critical to human health. Many people turn to supplements (capsules, cold liver oil etc.) to increase intake especially during winter months or while living in places with less sun.

Supplementation may provide benefits but oxidation and shelf-life is an consideration👇

quoting
note16j8…x905
yes it is good source of vit d and vit a, but i worry a lot about oxidation during shelf storage and processing and many people dislike the taste https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10003024/

What about cod liver oil? Also, what are some of the best studies ...

2025-11-11T14:05:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…5r20
_________________________

What about cod liver oil? Also, what are some of the best studies you have seen on vitamin D or sunshine and health?

@npub1sh2…ct5g do you have any educational materials on CJD and ...

2025-11-11T00:20:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…vymj
_________________________

BrianAppavu (npub1sh2…ct5g) do you have any educational materials on CJD and prion diseases that could raise people’s understanding on the topic?

@npub180c…agc0 that’s a great option too.

2025-10-31T19:15:02Z

In reply to nevent1q…jv3l
_________________________

Kendy (npub180c…agc0) that’s a great option too.

This is an alarming upward trend. How might this be solved? Could ...

2025-10-31T18:47:14Z

This is an alarming upward trend. How might this be solved? Could SOUNDHSA (npub17kw…jl36) help families in the US better cover their healthcare costs? thebitcoinyogi (npub1t8p…gkvf) StuartLackey (npub1gvn…cquk) markstephany (npub12wu…82kk) ?

quoting
note13dl…ttuz
average cost of a family’s annual health insurance premium has jumped +6% YoY in 2025, to $27,000, an all-time high.

This marks the 3rd consecutive annual increase, following 2023 and 2024 gains of +7%.

In other words, premiums are now rising faster than inflation for the 3rd year straight.

Since 2000, the average health insurance premium has surged +350%.

Small businesses are seeing the largest health-rate increases, with over half reporting +10% or more premium hikes in 2025.

Awesome, you’re welcome!

2025-10-29T22:23:38Z

In reply to nevent1q…f03x
_________________________

Awesome, you’re welcome!

Hi @npub1mcn…vmxm you can look at it here for now: ...

2025-10-29T22:02:40Z

In reply to nevent1q…5xvq
_________________________

Hi BroJack (npub1mcn…vmxm) you can look at it here for now:

https://primal.net/e/naddr1qq245u2jta3h532yxymng7zwf43j64jvf5ej6q3ql40cx7mc8cr23qamy6xhjx4gng9wmuczj2d8ertvw98w0aak9x3qxpqqqp65wzv727c

We’ll put. Additionally a health sciences knowledge commons ...

2025-10-27T22:49:11Z

In reply to nevent1q…l7kk
_________________________

We’ll put. Additionally a health sciences knowledge commons where people can discuss ideas and evidence without censorship is needed. Further discussing population data to clinical practice could be more transparent. Where on the internet do such open commons exist?

Yes, fascinating topic @npub1ltz…k4fh. It would interesting to ...

2025-10-23T23:44:40Z

In reply to nevent1q…cred
_________________________

Yes, fascinating topic jakewoodhouse (npub1ltz…k4fh). It would interesting to read Antoine Bechamp’s work like ‘The third Element of Blood’ and other works that were originally written in French. You are probably right that truth touches on both germ theory and the microzymian principle.

Nostr event nevent1qqs07qfyzkrcaz5pxwc6rhjmxku473jakc3elul3e8cdmwmh872c46szyr74lqmm0qlqd2yrhvng67g64zdq4m0nq2ff5lydd3c5aelhkc56ytkfjm0

2025-10-22T20:57:50Z

In reply to nevent1q…mkrh
_________________________

https://www.medschlr.org/publication/naddr/naddr1qvzqqqr4tqpzphzv6zrv6l89kxpj4h60m5fpz2ycsrfv0c54hjcwdpxqrt8wwlqxqyvhwumn8ghj7mt9v3ekx6rvwghxummnw3erztnrdaksqvmnda3kjctv94jx2ar9wfkkjmnpde68xtt0vckksetpd36xsttpdejz6argv5kk6mmwv4uj6urjda3xcetdaa3nuy

Social determinants of health—where we live, work, and ...

2025-10-22T20:56:46Z

In reply to naddr1qp…echa
_________________________

Social determinants of health—where we live, work, and play—are just as important, and in many ways even more critical, than clinical care when it comes to overall health outcomes. This doesn't diminish the vital role of acute care, but rather underscores that fostering healthy environments, including our financial systems and economic well-being, is fundamental to long-term health. Scott Wolfe (npub15m9…q643)'s paper illustrates this concept brilliantly. This is an excellent resource to share with colleagues in healthcare or social services.

#health #medschlr #bitcoin

Available on Nostr and MedSchlr

quoting
naddr1qp…ag4y

March 11, 2024

It’s hard to admit when cracks begin to appear in one’s worldview. It’s even more challenging to reorient oneself to new processes of learning and un-learning, and to then re-engage the world with revised perspective. I know because this is the journey I’ve been on in recent years.

For more than two decades, I worked in the areas of global health and community health/development. This included a stint at the World Health Organization , a few years with a global not-for-profit organization focused on HIV/AIDS care ( IAPAC ) , and 20 years working with “community health centres” both in Canada and globally ( Canadian Association of Community Health Centres (CACHC) Alliance for Healthier Communities International Federation of Community Health Centres ). These entailed roles in communication, policy and government relations, and executive leadership.

A thread that ran through all of this work was shifting the attention of healthcare providers, policymakers, and other civil society stakeholders to the upstream causes of illness and social distress. We often refer to these as the “social determinants of health (#SDoH)”.

Our understanding of the SDoH is grounded in a significant body of research, theory, and practice. Major early milestones include the groundbreaking work of 19th century Prussian physician, Dr. Rudolph Virchow (1) who practiced and advocated “social medicine”, as well as Dr. Michael Marmot's seminal Whitehall Study in London, UK (2). Marmot’s 1967 study documented clear differences in risk factors, morbidity, and mortality among British civil servants correlated to their grade of employment and socio-economic status. The lower the grade and income, the greater the risk factors and greater the morbidity and mortality rates.

Since the late 1960s, an ever-growing body of research has further documented the correlation of risk factors, morbidity, and mortality with various social factors. This body of research underscores the importance to health of factors like adequate income, access to shelter/housing, access to adequate nutritious food, freedom from social exclusion, and many others. In fact, these SDoH are vastly more significant to the health of individuals and groups than strictly genetic and biomedical factors (3).

It’s also important to note that what we have come to understand about SDoH via Western processes of learning was already deeply embedded in other cultural perspectives on health and wellbeing. Indigenous practices throughout the Americas, for instance, provide abundant examples (4, 5, 6). We must honour these.

The SDoH may sound like common sense, and they should. However, it’s important to have actual evidence of these correlations and to use this evidence to guide us in developing frameworks and plans for action at a societal level. In other words, what should we do about these social factors? Should we treat the SDoH as strictly personal responsibilities? Is there a role for the state and, if so, what? What is the role of civil society groups, of individual health practitioners, and so on? These are complex questions which merit continued attention as a matter of political philosophy.

I remain convinced that we should attend to these matters as a shared responsibility, with important roles for the state, for civil society groups and organizations, for health and social service professionals, for educators, for families, and for individuals.

Since the late 20th century, health and social service organizations, government agencies, and many other relevant stakeholders have increased attention and activity focused on the SDoH. We should celebrate this evolution in thinking and action. It reflects an ethic of mutual benefit and an orientation toward prevention before treatment. A shift toward the SDoH also provides a systematic way to safeguard against pathologizing the human experience, where every aspect of dis-ease is handed over to a perversely incentivized medical-pharmaceutical industrial complex. This is not to disavow allopathic medicine, nor our major advances in diagnostics and treatment. It is simply to say that we need balance. We need to avoid spending scarce energy and resources on treating downstream that which can be prevented or better treated upstream.

As part of this movement, health and social service agencies have embedded a wide range of programs, services, and policy/advocacy positions that explicitly address various SDoH. For more than two decades, I have been an active participant in this movement and a vocal proponent of this approach. In diverse ways, I helped to translate our understanding of SDoH and health equity into practical lines of action within the organizations for which I worked, up until late 2023 when I embarked on a new vocational journey.

In practical terms. SDoH focused programs within the organizations I worked for included things like developing protocol and tools for individual doctors, nurses, and other practitioners to better connect vulnerable patients with much needed social supports. It included social workers and community health workers securing shelter or employment or food for at risk clients. It included integrating services like childcare and transportation with clinical services in order to reduce barriers for mothers seeking care for themselves and their children. And, it included advocacy for public policy and government investment that supports school nutrition programs, affordable housing, and other social inputs for health. These are just a few examples to illustrate the point.

I’m incredibly proud of this past work and I believe that the emphasis on upstream thinking and action needs to persist and to drive public policy and systems design. However, over the past few years I have become increasingly attuned to important new information (new to me, that is) which has caused me to reconsider my perspective on some of this work. I have come to believe that, despite our best intentions and the nobility of our efforts to address upstream causes of illness and social distress, we have still been labouring too far downstream. Our scarce energies have been misallocated. In certain instances, we have unwittingly been a marginal part of the problem too. I’ll try to unpack this.

I see two interrelated problems. First, we have reached a point where our remedial programs and services focused on SDoH are at risk of becoming institutionalized and self-perpetuating. I fear that we are becoming captive to the collective, organizational inertia of these remedial efforts instead of allocating more of our energy and resources to the larger public policy challenges that engender individual and social distress. Secondly, and more insidious I believe, our typical approach to those larger public policy matters (when we do direct energy to them) sometimes fuels many of the problems we seek to correct. I’m referring here to our tendency to seek increased public spending as a panacea for socio-economic disparities.

So, what new information has caused me to change perspective? Well, it has been a journey of learning about the mechanics of financial and monetary systems, and about the nature and consequences of money itself. That is to say, what money actually is, the history of money, what makes for sound versus unsound money, and the many consequences of the money we choose (or are forced) to use.

As a result of this educational journey over the past few years, I now believe that the most significant cause of social disparities is something which has actually escaped our attention: our “broken money” and its deleterious impact downstream. I still believe that it’s very important to continue providing services that address SDoH on the ground, and to continue drawing attention to housing, food security, and other inputs for health. However, my revised perspective is that in order to effectively achieve our diverse goals related to the SDoH, we must reallocate a significant portion of our attention and our resources to tackling the major cause which has escaped our attention. We must paddle further upstream to fix the money.

For a proper examination of our broken money and its downstream impact, there are several resources that I would recommend. Among them are Lyn Alden 's Broken Money: Why Our Financial System is Failing Us and How We Can Make it Better (7); Dr. Saifedean Ammous ’s The Fiat Standard (8) and The Bitcoin Standard (9); and Seb Bunney 's The Hidden Cost of Money: How Financial Forces Shape Our Lives & the World Around Us (10). For the sake of this brief essay and my call to action, I will offer a high-level breakdown of key points. I hope that I do them some justice.

The money which dominates globally -- our national and regional “fiat” currencies like the Canadian dollar, U.S. dollar, Euro, Mexican peso, Kenyan shilling, and so on -- can be produced in unlimited quantities to pay for government expenditures. When governments increase the supply of these currencies, which they have been doing at alarming rates over the past five decades (see Figure 1, for example), they cause inflation and reduced purchasing power as the currency debases in value. Not only does this exacerbate the challenges faced by individuals and families looking to meet their ongoing needs, it also unleashes a wide range of market forces that disproportionately harm individuals and families at the lower end of the income curve.

It’s hard to admit when cracks begin to appear in one’s worldview. It’s even more challenging to reorient oneself to new processes of learning and un-learning, and to then re-engage the world with revised perspective. I know because this is the journey I’ve been on in recent years.

For more than two decades, I worked in the areas of global health and community health/development. This included a stint at the World Health Organization , a few years with a global not-for-profit organization focused on HIV/AIDS care ( IAPAC ) , and 20 years working with “community health centres” both in Canada and globally ( Canadian Association of Community Health Centres (CACHC) Alliance for Healthier Communities International Federation of Community Health Centres ). These entailed roles in communication, policy and government relations, and executive leadership.

A thread that ran through all of this work was shifting the attention of healthcare providers, policymakers, and other civil society stakeholders to the upstream causes of illness and social distress. We often refer to these as the “social determinants of health (#SDoH)”.

Our understanding of the SDoH is grounded in a significant body of research, theory, and practice. Major early milestones include the groundbreaking work of 19th century Prussian physician, Dr. Rudolph Virchow (1) who practiced and advocated “social medicine”, as well as Dr. Michael Marmot's seminal Whitehall Study in London, UK (2). Marmot’s 1967 study documented clear differences in risk factors, morbidity, and mortality among British civil servants correlated to their grade of employment and socio-economic status. The lower the grade and income, the greater the risk factors and greater the morbidity and mortality rates.

Since the late 1960s, an ever-growing body of research has further documented the correlation of risk factors, morbidity, and mortality with various social factors. This body of research underscores the importance to health of factors like adequate income, access to shelter/housing, access to adequate nutritious food, freedom from social exclusion, and many others. In fact, these SDoH are vastly more significant to the health of individuals and groups than strictly genetic and biomedical factors (3).

It’s also important to note that what we have come to understand about SDoH via Western processes of learning was already deeply embedded in other cultural perspectives on health and wellbeing. Indigenous practices throughout the Americas, for instance, provide abundant examples (4, 5, 6). We must honour these.

The SDoH may sound like common sense, and they should. However, it’s important to have actual evidence of these correlations and to use this evidence to guide us in developing frameworks and plans for action at a societal level. In other words, what should we do about these social factors? Should we treat the SDoH as strictly personal responsibilities? Is there a role for the state and, if so, what? What is the role of civil society groups, of individual health practitioners, and so on? These are complex questions which merit continued attention as a matter of political philosophy.

I remain convinced that we should attend to these matters as a shared responsibility, with important roles for the state, for civil society groups and organizations, for health and social service professionals, for educators, for families, and for individuals.

Since the late 20th century, health and social service organizations, government agencies, and many other relevant stakeholders have increased attention and activity focused on the SDoH. We should celebrate this evolution in thinking and action. It reflects an ethic of mutual benefit and an orientation toward prevention before treatment. A shift toward the SDoH also provides a systematic way to safeguard against pathologizing the human experience, where every aspect of dis-ease is handed over to a perversely incentivized medical-pharmaceutical industrial complex. This is not to disavow allopathic medicine, nor our major advances in diagnostics and treatment. It is simply to say that we need balance. We need to avoid spending scarce energy and resources on treating downstream that which can be prevented or better treated upstream.

As part of this movement, health and social service agencies have embedded a wide range of programs, services, and policy/advocacy positions that explicitly address various SDoH. For more than two decades, I have been an active participant in this movement and a vocal proponent of this approach. In diverse ways, I helped to translate our understanding of SDoH and health equity into practical lines of action within the organizations for which I worked, up until late 2023 when I embarked on a new vocational journey.

In practical terms. SDoH focused programs within the organizations I worked for included things like developing protocol and tools for individual doctors, nurses, and other practitioners to better connect vulnerable patients with much needed social supports. It included social workers and community health workers securing shelter or employment or food for at risk clients. It included integrating services like childcare and transportation with clinical services in order to reduce barriers for mothers seeking care for themselves and their children. And, it included advocacy for public policy and government investment that supports school nutrition programs, affordable housing, and other social inputs for health. These are just a few examples to illustrate the point.

I’m incredibly proud of this past work and I believe that the emphasis on upstream thinking and action needs to persist and to drive public policy and systems design. However, over the past few years I have become increasingly attuned to important new information (new to me, that is) which has caused me to reconsider my perspective on some of this work. I have come to believe that, despite our best intentions and the nobility of our efforts to address upstream causes of illness and social distress, we have still been labouring too far downstream. Our scarce energies have been misallocated. In certain instances, we have unwittingly been a marginal part of the problem too. I’ll try to unpack this.

I see two interrelated problems. First, we have reached a point where our remedial programs and services focused on SDoH are at risk of becoming institutionalized and self-perpetuating. I fear that we are becoming captive to the collective, organizational inertia of these remedial efforts instead of allocating more of our energy and resources to the larger public policy challenges that engender individual and social distress. Secondly, and more insidious I believe, our typical approach to those larger public policy matters (when we do direct energy to them) sometimes fuels many of the problems we seek to correct. I’m referring here to our tendency to seek increased public spending as a panacea for socio-economic disparities.

So, what new information has caused me to change perspective? Well, it has been a journey of learning about the mechanics of financial and monetary systems, and about the nature and consequences of money itself. That is to say, what money actually is, the history of money, what makes for sound versus unsound money, and the many consequences of the money we choose (or are forced) to use.

As a result of this educational journey over the past few years, I now believe that the most significant cause of social disparities is something which has actually escaped our attention: our “broken money” and its deleterious impact downstream. I still believe that it’s very important to continue providing services that address SDoH on the ground, and to continue drawing attention to housing, food security, and other inputs for health. However, my revised perspective is that in order to effectively achieve our diverse goals related to the SDoH, we must reallocate a significant portion of our attention and our resources to tackling the major cause which has escaped our attention. We must paddle further upstream to fix the money.

For a proper examination of our broken money and its downstream impact, there are several resources that I would recommend. Among them are Lyn Alden 's Broken Money: Why Our Financial System is Failing Us and How We Can Make it Better (7); Dr. Saifedean Ammous ’s The Fiat Standard (8) and The Bitcoin Standard (9); and Seb Bunney 's The Hidden Cost of Money: How Financial Forces Shape Our Lives & the World Around Us (10). For the sake of this brief essay and my call to action, I will offer a high-level breakdown of key points. I hope that I do them some justice.

The money which dominates globally -- our national and regional “fiat” currencies like the Canadian dollar, U.S. dollar, Euro, Mexican peso, Kenyan shilling, and so on -- can be produced in unlimited quantities to pay for government expenditures. When governments increase the supply of these currencies, which they have been doing at alarming rates over the past five decades (see Figure 1, for example), they cause inflation and reduced purchasing power as the currency debases in value. Not only does this exacerbate the challenges faced by individuals and families looking to meet their ongoing needs, it also unleashes a wide range of market forces that disproportionately harm individuals and families at the lower end of the income curve.

<img src="https://blossom.primal.net/0196dfe6f1fe09279b97c9a3d689b16e8f502caa1b51026f97e8abfba4c0a9b7.png">

Figure 1: US Money Supply (M2)

A good example of these perverse market forces is found in housing (11). As a result of inflation and our debasing currencies, individuals with discretionary income require assets that can help them preserve their earnings and wealth, such as real estate and stocks. A preferred choice has been residential housing, largely because it is a hard asset which has a clear utility value (can be lived in) and is also widely accepted socially as a “safe”, investable asset.

When people en masse channel money into housing with the expectation that it is an investment rather than simply for its utility value, this drives up prices. We are financializing the housing market rather than having housing meet our societal needs. Housing becomes inaccessible for increasing portions of the population and the strain of carrying costs places tremendous, cascading pressures and stress on individuals and families.

<img src="https://blossom.primal.net/6be358a89c608fd7b9021bfba3a3e4ee266b29e0176eebdf5f7034b50c20ce7d.png">

Figure 2: Housing price growth vs wage growth, Canada (2006-2022)

Examples of these unleashed market forces abound. They have been growing in scope and degree for more than five decades, particularly since 1971 when the U.S. dollar (as de facto global reserve currency) was de-pegged from gold. A fascinating collection of charts that paint the picture of trends since 1971 can be found at: https://wtfhappenedin1971.com.

We have been dramatically increasing the money supply in countries around the world for the past five-plus decades, with government spending outpacing government revenue at an accelerating rate. Government debt has risen at alarming rates (see Figure 3, for example), and the cost to governments of simply servicing debt is reaching dangerous levels. For stakeholders advocating increased public spending to tackle social disparities, we must recognize that we are doing so against this backdrop of persistent deficit spending and debt.

<img src="https://blossom.primal.net/261e78d9cd9ad2779d501efe3a51fb9a20d129412be26190b608d2f4a6dc3f64.jpg">

Figure 3: U.S. National Debt (1995-2024)

In order to provide increased public funding for housing programs, for food security programs, and for other social benefits, governments must either increase tax income or create new money. Since raising taxes is politically fraught and would still likely be insufficient to meet all committed expenditures for most governments, money creation is the option of choice. This is done to pay for military expenditures and social benefits alike. Conservative, centrist, and social-democratic governments alike are all guilty of money creation. This is not about ideology, it's about broken money and systems.

The creation of new money causes further inflation and reduced purchasing power. Those with greater income continue to chase assets like housing and stocks to preserve wealth while lower income earners unable to save and invest in such assets are left struggling with mounting day-to-day costs and fleeting options for financial stability. Millennials and GenZ-ers now face the brunt of this decades old experiment with fiat money creation, as hopes for future financial security become increasingly fleeting.

The experiment with fiat money creation, deficit spending, and debt has gone on for so long now, and across the political spectrum, that it is hard to imagine any possible course correction from within this system.

We are left with two viable and interconnected options. The first is to elevate public discourse about balanced budgets and the important choices we must make about priorities for spending. The second option is to move to a system where governments cannot simply create new money to fulfill promises through deficit spending. This second option has been an elusive dream in the era of fiat money. However, the introduction of #Bitcoin -- a sound, decentralized global money which has rules but no rulers -- now provides new hope (12, 13). Around the world, millions of people are turning to Bitcoin after arriving at the same conclusion: that if we fix the money, we can fix the incentives, and fix the world.

In writing this brief essay, I hope to pique the interest of individuals and groups that are actively involved in programs, services and advocacy focused on SDoH. My call to action is to take a closer look at the question of money, financial and monetary systems, and the fresh alternatives presented by Bitcoin. This is the learning journey that I have been on over the past few years. While it has been dis-orienting at times, I have never before felt such hope at the possibility for meaningful impact in reducing socio-economic disparities, both domestically and globally.

On the global front, Alex Gladstein 's books Check Your Financial Privilege: Inside The Global Bitcoin Revolution (14) and Hidden Repression: How the IMF and World Bank Sell Exploitation as Development (15) are must reads to better understand the harmful impact of fiat currencies on a global scale and why/how Bitcoin is an essential part of the solution.

I'll end with an additional appeal to anyone moved to take a closer look at resources and ideas I've touched upon here: embrace not just the content but a spirit of generosity and an openness to new civic engagements. We live in an era of such political tribalism. Matters to do with money, taxation, debt, wealth, and social disparities tend to evoke strong partisan sentiments. To the extent that we can engage on these matters across partisan lines, to discuss broken money and how to fix it, we are already beginning to fix the world.

REFERENCES

1. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/14034948211048289…

2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1674771/

3. https://himss.org/resources/importance-social-determinants-health-determining-right-clinical-interventions…

4. https://fnha.ca/wellness/wellness-for-first-nations/first-nations-perspective-on-health-and-wellness…

5. https://iphcc.ca

6. https://www3.paho.org/hq/index.php?option=com_docman&view=download&alias=1342-health-indigenous-people-13-traditional-health-systems-latin-america-caribbean-342&category_slug=salud-pueblos-indigenas-1034&Itemid=270&lang=en…

7. https://amazon.ca/Broken-Money-Financial-System-Failing/dp/B0CG8985FR/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Vs1A5Fp1qKk_32wykc7RontMKAvtMNX3E3kueli-I5OrawINv2JRycf1mk-KaKcUbRCW3VovFxQtY86vmiHB9jThRxGkQd8PPhVy0DV1dxeE_NMWSQCqZ_WLtJ8LCqAh488selw1YIi4lsIdPWs81RaADbarbIAHPcqTsp0UHU-pF_hms64A_ZHYxL6I2w8G2ZoOvFeBTzC8xf49QP9XBLtvb0dCApGAYx6QtXQhHxSQV4FU2cQdtqh21w2--0bE.8MAftSX8FHrTVKJvVnQm1Y6VKcX9P0Em0pD9Ztxf_UM&dib_tag=se&hvadid=678253029729&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9000968&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=9171584456085569123&hvtargid=kwd-2187915186855&hydadcr=3317_13589051&keywords=lyn+alden+broken+money&qid=1710043520&sr=8-1…

8. https://amazon.ca/Fiat-Standard-Slavery-Alternative-Civilization/dp/1544526474/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.rmNsUbundNFeHqOouPNPzfrzD7UQ6nA-z4H0o-8qrWo01bjJtX-g3D3HdRlkBwSF9h-dj3wEdmkxKKTex2Ke_g_-gXm2hGkXpZXvxyp3lUVtF1x57-tJABw27LoIop7oCyzWCBkwEh8OOm3aTuaeWwwU85oPjj784OEPqn8brlyxXxpn2QzZ0alXuOO6iZikGNeU8M-bizl7tKEwMgcuQVGWm7MvQtxHWKlmEex8J8jgCdq7ooLwFBSgMq-MGYJ7iQ60NEUkv27poh3v04VT_s47TS1YcFE24SbzTCZohJI.JpewL1cR3MbTCiLSNqh_dw4IRnYPNk96YDGqi50uXwo&dib_tag=se&hvadid=600219068538&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9000968&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=7303525049987301758&hvtargid=kwd-861746513931&hydadcr=23383_13536933&keywords=fiat+standard&qid=1710043555&sr=8-1…

9. https://amazon.ca/Bitcoin-Standard-Decentralized-Alternative-Central/dp/1119473861/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1NMLRYMYQ1LJF&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Pr_mvRe4lvxYub2TuxA127y87TxaE4t0lkDK_4HZx5F-iMp0TBcumxeUe-ASxOyAWQ_EI9a_ROei6Y1V44vidRq3GaiHW7uwgQQ_iNLXsLrdZf9_BXoUPCjGQOE7SOdwtaNhGgMi6RFfpLiIsaVYleymQrYclJsqaf6yWa864TU.aP2CSR6zURafrkF1QfNJnnivTHerlkx8Bta5fuaUyoE&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+fiat+standard+saifedean+ammous&qid=1710043584&sprefix=fiat+standard%2Caps%2C73&sr=8-2…

10. https://amazon.ca/Hidden-Cost-Money-Financial-Forces/dp/1738934101/ref=sr_1_1?crid=T85D2FG4UQE6&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.DqvhhuXtHhpCE21OkSwisukU5VJ8RO_PyztvK73ShUY.lgaA6_KRrfSZo47jqBFHUJDDUeZkk6Sp_a5Fqz_z0k0&dib_tag=se&keywords=sebastian+bunney&qid=1710043639&sprefix=sebastian+bunney%2Caps%2C78&sr=8-1…

11. https://ohchr.org/en/special-procedures/sr-housing/financialization-housing#:~:text=Known%20as%20the%20financialization%20of,an%20investment%20has%20been%20devastating…

12. https://bitcoinmagazine.com/culture/bitcoin-is-hope-for-gen-z…

13. https://bitcoinmagazine.com/culture/how-bitcoin-might-save-gen-z…

14. https://amazon.ca/Check-Your-Financial-Privilege-Gladstein/dp/B09V2NM9VJ…

15. https://www.amazon.ca/Hidden-Repression-World-Exploitation-Development/dp/B0CN92M1YL/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.hLyRbA7wY2G1nZbNEqxGaHaTmOyQ1c8zIRRW2LC6zBwh_3xZlSYbN2GtOTnQfDn3Ck3wLZtBSjPlzazHklggh4xJLDGuJ3XKauyysOxpbEudg5nMPl2NCH7nUpzcNX6DboIIKDYnjThOkwON-5wtOu8ipcpo8FeyilRrnF8G_MSgxZ_ZT6Bbj_YEQja3AdvLlrh4QWF9VvatmxGgOEokESXGhtjikUANjMXgjVgbCd_E-MnJMP6_Ef61q5FQiTLEsrbtnI3FIJ4MKEkhXU93RpS_aXSvntYphwAoyaVLfOg.JBu8rvwW96oYbLhqD_OWkt0mhfyN2faWiMK3fGVoomY&dib_tag=se&hvadid=678293331538&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9000968&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=15798101251429930414&hvtargid=kwd-2014960030023&hydadcr=5407_13351374&keywords=hidden+repression&qid=1710043846&sr=8-1

@npub1gc6…uyek @npub1q3p…3my9 @npub1t8p…gkvf

2025-10-20T18:13:49Z

In reply to nevent1q…awpe
_________________________

ostermayer (npub1gc6…uyek) ronniesamuel (npub1q3p…3my9) thebitcoinyogi (npub1t8p…gkvf)

Thanks Jon! Yes, we would like to understand how clinicians can ...

2025-10-20T18:12:51Z

In reply to nevent1q…szec
_________________________

Thanks Jon! Yes, we would like to understand how clinicians can use MedSchlr for publishing purposes. We just launched the landing page (optimized for desktop only right now). Would love feedback on functionality/features etc. Clinical databases and integration of AI for evidence synthesis are things we’d like to explore.

MedSchlr’s landing page (in beta) is now live! The page is ...

2025-10-19T13:15:52Z

MedSchlr’s landing page (in beta) is now live!

The page is optimized for desktop use only right now and can be found at:

www.medschlr.org

You can explore existing publications including the MedSchlr charter, compose, format, and publish scholarly articles. Check it out today!

In the coming months and into the new year, we aim to: 1) gather user feedback to improve experience; 2) support student research that will explore how clinicians and researchers can best use MedSchlr for scientific peer review publishing and collaboration.

If you want to support MedSchlr’s development consider donating to our geyser page (link in bio).🙏🧡

#health #medschlr #alexandria #docchain

@npub1zvu…w2ya

2025-10-18T01:13:06Z

In reply to nevent1q…64hg
_________________________

coachemma (npub1zvu…w2ya)

Thank you for your thoughtful feedback and input. MedSchlr ...

2025-10-15T17:27:00Z

In reply to nevent1q…dc7t
_________________________

Thank you for your thoughtful feedback and input. MedSchlr strives to be a place where experience and information can flow for learning purposes around chronic diseases and other health and medical sciences topics.

Based on your feedback, we are currently drafting and contemplating use of a content/publishing guideline for general content, personal experience reports, and self-documented case studies. Potentially if interest increases there could be additional guidelines for other major content types that aim to be ‘peer-reviewed’ literature etc.

What you describe for your particular use case sounds like a self-documented case study. We’ll appreciate your feedback once the guideline is published and see how it can work for your needs and more broadly for others interested in this type of content publication.

Additional thoughts are always welcome in this early development phase of MedSchlr.

What you’ve said about zaps makes sense. It could be a negative ...

2025-10-01T04:10:35Z

In reply to nevent1q…2z8w
_________________________

What you’ve said about zaps makes sense. It could be a negative incentive in some cases but signal for blog style and emergent pieces of scholarship possibly.
Organic growth will be critical to help identify use cases among different stakeholder groups.

@npub1m3x…a5sf great discussion here by @npub1tkf…wnl5

2025-09-29T22:35:35Z

In reply to nevent1q…6q2e
_________________________

liminal 🦠 (npub1m3x…a5sf) great discussion here by smallworlnd (npub1tkf…wnl5)

Excellent point re: citations.

2025-09-29T22:34:40Z

In reply to nevent1q…8t7e
_________________________

Excellent point re: citations.

Totally @npub1tkf…wnl5. Many issues to ponder especially while ...

2025-09-29T22:33:00Z

In reply to nevent1q…6q2e
_________________________

Totally smallworlnd (npub1tkf…wnl5). Many issues to ponder especially while building a decentralized censorship resistant publishing platform like MedSchlr.

Thinking about the point around the limited ability to interact with pre-print content of such kind, a gap that MedSchlr could fill since it is a Nostr native social networking knowledge commons that integrates GitCitadel (npub1s3h…75wz) Alexandria library is infrastructure for engagement and learning that traditional platforms are without. It could be a viable tool that: 1) encourages individual learning in a novel way. In a user’s MedSchlr instance they could create lists, publish new content, remix other content with attribution, reference external links to articles using doi’s; 2) allows users to follow, comment, and synthesize related content of people they follow; 3) be a network of discovery and organic community formation not just for healthcare professionals and researchers but other users interested in medicine and health. The features and health related content are somewhat starting to take shape now, and that’s why we are building a landing page to help guide interested users.

There are many things to consider like relays and quality standards. If users aren’t using the same relay how would they be able to see others content and discover new? And also how is quality determined of academic works, web-of-trust? For ‘academic’ quality publication is it enough to have a charter that notes the rules of the community and for different study publication types ensure publication guidelines with checklists like CONSORT for randomized controlled trials as an example? There may need to be a degree of centralization for certain user groups but the decentralization could help to further reach and transparency.

Another aspect where MedSchlr could shine is content types. There could be transcriptions of videos, podcasts, etc. of medical and heath sciences information. This is already possible using #Alexandria. This would greatly expand what pre-print sites allow.

On the note of the publishing inertia, zaps, might potentially be a way to incentivize people to publish papers on Nostr and could be indexed in MedSchlr. Professional communities could form and could create new peer-review processes using the new value incentive structure.

These are all preliminary ideas to see how to leverage the MedSchlr-Alexandria-nostr ecosystem to better medical and health sciences publishing. Additional thoughts are always welcome.

@npub1spd…q6j7

2025-09-09T16:19:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…2ez0
_________________________

paulinthejungle (npub1spd…q6j7)

#note1rwm…ked4

2025-09-09T15:52:45Z

In reply to nevent1q…dsp3
_________________________

quoting note1rwm…ked4

The Problem

Medical and health sciences knowledge today is trapped behind gatekeepers. Access limitations, institutional silos, and gaps between research and application create information asymmetries that undermine trust and limit potential for improved health outcomes.

Peer-reviewed research and knowledge often sits locked behind paywalls. Clinical guidelines flow through institutional hierarchies. Patient experiences remain isolated from research communities. Expert insights get filtered through bureaucratic channels that prioritize control over learning.

We believe medical and health sciences knowledge should flow more freely, evolve through open dialogue, and remain accessible to all who seek to understand health and healing.

We're building an additional path way for discourse, educational content and research funding that coexists with existing processes.

Our Innovation

MedSchlr builds competing curation networks for medical and health sciences knowledge instead of relying on centralized gatekeepers. Rather than single authorities controlling information flow, we enable multiple quality systems to compete for user trust. Professional networks can maintain strict evidence standards while patient communities focus on practical insights. Academic networks emphasize rigorous peer review while specialty groups bring domain expertise. Users choose networks matching their needs while all maintain transparency and accountability.

Direct Patient-Researcher Funding: Bitcoin/Lightning enables new funding pathways that bypass traditional gatekeepers. Communities could directly fund research they care about. Patients could pool micropayments to support studies on neglected topics. Individuals could contribute directly to researchers investigating conditions that affect them.

This changes incentives. Researchers respond to patient priorities rather than institutional agendas. Contributors get acknowledged in research outputs. Communities with shared interests can organize around their own research needs.

Bioethical Foundation

Our approach rests on established bioethical principles: respect for human autonomy where individuals make their own informed health decisions, beneficence through actively promoting well-being via knowledge sharing, non-maleficence by providing pathways for learning rather than medical advice, justice through equitable access to knowledge regardless of background or resources, and respect of persons by honoring diverse perspectives and experiences.

Technical Foundation

Built on Nostr and Alexandria for censorship resistance and decentralized knowledge sharing.

Bitcoin/Lightning integration enables: - Direct micropayments from patients to researchers - Community crowdfunding for studies - Contributor acknowledgements and compensation + - Value-for-value economics without institutional gatekeepers

Open protocols ensure no single entity controls access or standards.

What We're Building

Patient-Led Research: Direct funding pathways where patients support research they care about. Community protocol development for chronic conditions. Rigorous case studies led by those who live the experience.

Educational Advancements: Living textbooks that evolve with current research. Direct student-expert interaction across geographic boundaries. Knowledge that flows between disciplines without bureaucratic barriers.

Professional Liberation: Spaces where healthcare professionals can discuss study limitations openly, share insights across specialties, and participate in evidence evaluation without traditional institutional constraints.

Prevention Focus: Platforms that actively promote nutritional science, lifestyle medicine, environmental health factors, and evidence-based prevention strategies often missing from treatment-focused institutions.

Join Us

Healthcare systems emphasize treatment over prevention, but we're building infrastructure where knowledge about nutritional science, environmental health factors, social determinants of disease, and evidence-based prevention strategies can flourish alongside traditional medical research.

Whether you're managing chronic conditions, working to maintain or improve your health, or are generally curious and want to participate in community discussions, we're building this for you. We need patients creating pathways for community-driven research, professionals sharing insights across specialties, researchers exploring direct community funding, students transforming how they learn, and everyone who believes medical knowledge should serve human flourishing rather than institutional control.

No gatekeepers, no institutional capture, no single points of failure. Come help us figure out what works.

MedSchlr Community
Built on Alexandria/Nostr

In partnership with GitCitadel

v1.0

Cool to see @npub1s3h…75wz updates on #Alexandria, the base ...

2025-08-21T19:53:02Z

Cool to see GitCitadel (npub1s3h…75wz) updates on #Alexandria, the base library MedSchlr is being built on.

MedSchlr meeting happens tomorrow with students and the team. Excited to keep discussions and the work moving as we build MedSchlr in this early phase of development.

quoting
note16ut…j58h
Good evening, Nostriches.

We have a new alpha version of the #Alexandria Gutenberg edition on https://next-alexandria.gitcitadel.eu . We've made some screencasts of improved or expanded functionality.

The Compose and My Notes pages:

People searching with "n:" prefix:

Hashtag searching with "t:" prefix:

D-tag searching with "d:" prefix:

Finding your own publications and visualisations:

Loading events for republishing:

Creating a longform article:

Notifications and public messages:

Heartfelt and thoughtful story from @npub1sh2…ct5g about ...

2025-08-21T19:01:14Z

Heartfelt and thoughtful story from BrianAppavu (npub1sh2…ct5g) about doctor-patient care, highlighting an important question:

How can healthcare professionals better serve their patients?

While private care offers physicians more time for one-on-one patient interaction (as shown in Brian's case), how might patient-centered approaches be implemented within centralized healthcare systems where organizational metrics and incentives often take precedence? 🤔This is an especially important question for centrally funded health care systems.

Does change start with physician-led change to more private or home care models?

These questions arises from the tension between institutional goals and personalized care. Many practitioners feel constrained by administrative burdens in traditional settings, while patients increasingly seek more meaningful healthcare relationships as noted in Brian’s story.

Could alternative payment systems and communication networks like bitcoin and nostr facilitate a more direct patient-provider economic relationship, potentially creating an environment that supports truly personalized healthcare?
Check out the

Video:
https://youtu.be/L3rWMWvBH6Y

Or Nostr article below.

quoting
note1x56…m40r
My Nostr Article Regarding The Art of Medicine

naddr1qv…uvw4

At #learningbitcoin in Vancouver during the Decentralized Health ...

2025-08-19T01:31:46Z

At #learningbitcoin in Vancouver during the Decentralized Health panel we talked about the need for new medical and health sciences knowledge commons. This is what MedSchlr is working on. Also, it was mentioned that:

1) some healthcare professionals are already incorporating bitcoin payments into their practice;

2) industry leaders like Sound Health are pioneering bitcoin Health Savings Accounts to empower individuals and their families!

Interested to learn more about the practical application of bitcoin in healthcare? Check out the team at Sound Health, they’re putting on an awesome event at the end of the month!

quoting
note1e8n…zddf
Sound money 🤝SOUND health

Join us The Space (nprofile…nnnw) next Sunday 8/24 @ 4pm to dive into #bitcoin and #wellness!

Speakers include 3 #bitcoin docs in direct primary care and dental practice, BenJustman (nprofile…47t4) and our co-founders StuartLackey (nprofile…cgej) + thebitcoinyogi (nprofile…06ys) 🙏🏽⚡️

🧠 Ever noticed how we create labels for complex phenomena like ...

2025-08-15T15:29:05Z

🧠 Ever noticed how we create labels for complex phenomena like "seizures" or "money," then treat these labels as if they're the actual thing? That's reification—mistaking our descriptions for reality.

When we say someone "has epilepsy," we're using a concept we created to describe a pattern of brain activity. But the brain doesn't know it's having "epilepsy"—it's just doing what brains do.

This mental shortcut limits our understanding in medicine, health sciences, economics, and beyond. How might breaking free from rigid definitions lead to breakthroughs in treatment and prevention approaches?

📚 As we're building MedSchlr, we're particularly interested in content that challenges conventional thinking and supporting individual and community learning. Questioning established frameworks like this can open new pathways to understanding complex medical conditions and health related problems.

What other concepts do you think we've reified that might be holding back progress?

🔎 To learn more, check out: BrianAppavu (npub1sh2…ct5g)'s video, ‘Reification: The Invisible Spectra Our Words Ignore’: https://youtu.be/ll5rM3k5o4w?si=zXnHQVlazZCpiMXK

#docchain #bitcoin #asknostr

@npub1sh2…ct5g @npub1jdv…7jlj @npub1p2u…3xce please ...

2025-08-12T02:23:44Z

In reply to nevent1q…v5a5
_________________________

BrianAppavu (npub1sh2…ct5g) kamoweasel (npub1jdv…7jlj) Ahi (npub1p2u…3xce) please checkout the MedSchlr charter and share with anyone else you think might be interested in providing feedback on the charter. Greatly appreciate it!

You can also read our community charter directly on nostr: ...

2025-08-12T02:12:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…v5a5
_________________________

You can also read our community charter directly on nostr:

quoting
naddr1qq…s262

The Problem

Medical and health sciences knowledge today is trapped behind gatekeepers. Access limitations, institutional silos, and gaps between research and application create information asymmetries that undermine trust and limit potential for improved health outcomes.

Peer-reviewed research and knowledge often sits locked behind paywalls. Clinical guidelines flow through institutional hierarchies. Patient experiences remain isolated from research communities. Expert insights get filtered through bureaucratic channels that prioritize control over learning.

We believe medical and health sciences knowledge should flow more freely, evolve through open dialogue, and remain accessible to all who seek to understand health and healing.

We're building an additional path way for discourse, educational content and research funding that coexists with existing processes.

Our Innovation

MedSchlr builds competing curation networks for medical and health sciences knowledge instead of relying on centralized gatekeepers. Rather than single authorities controlling information flow, we enable multiple quality systems to compete for user trust. Professional networks can maintain strict evidence standards while patient communities focus on practical insights. Academic networks emphasize rigorous peer review while specialty groups bring domain expertise. Users choose networks matching their needs while all maintain transparency and accountability.

Direct Patient-Researcher Funding: Bitcoin/Lightning enables new funding pathways that bypass traditional gatekeepers. Communities could directly fund research they care about. Patients could pool micropayments to support studies on neglected topics. Individuals could contribute directly to researchers investigating conditions that affect them.

This changes incentives. Researchers respond to patient priorities rather than institutional agendas. Contributors get acknowledged in research outputs. Communities with shared interests can organize around their own research needs.

Bioethical Foundation

Our approach rests on established bioethical principles: respect for human autonomy where individuals make their own informed health decisions, beneficence through actively promoting well-being via knowledge sharing, non-maleficence by providing pathways for learning rather than medical advice, justice through equitable access to knowledge regardless of background or resources, and respect of persons by honoring diverse perspectives and experiences.

Technical Foundation

Built on Nostr and Alexandria for censorship resistance and decentralized knowledge sharing.

Bitcoin/Lightning integration enables: - Direct micropayments from patients to researchers - Community crowdfunding for studies - Contributor acknowledgements and compensation + - Value-for-value economics without institutional gatekeepers

Open protocols ensure no single entity controls access or standards.

What We're Building

Patient-Led Research: Direct funding pathways where patients support research they care about. Community protocol development for chronic conditions. Rigorous case studies led by those who live the experience.

Educational Advancements: Living textbooks that evolve with current research. Direct student-expert interaction across geographic boundaries. Knowledge that flows between disciplines without bureaucratic barriers.

Professional Liberation: Spaces where healthcare professionals can discuss study limitations openly, share insights across specialties, and participate in evidence evaluation without traditional institutional constraints.

Prevention Focus: Platforms that actively promote nutritional science, lifestyle medicine, environmental health factors, and evidence-based prevention strategies often missing from treatment-focused institutions.

Join Us

Healthcare systems emphasize treatment over prevention, but we're building infrastructure where knowledge about nutritional science, environmental health factors, social determinants of disease, and evidence-based prevention strategies can flourish alongside traditional medical research.

Whether you're managing chronic conditions, working to maintain or improve your health, or are generally curious and want to participate in community discussions, we're building this for you. We need patients creating pathways for community-driven research, professionals sharing insights across specialties, researchers exploring direct community funding, students transforming how they learn, and everyone who believes medical knowledge should serve human flourishing rather than institutional control.

No gatekeepers, no institutional capture, no single points of failure. Come help us figure out what works.

MedSchlr Community
Built on Alexandria/Nostr

In partnership with GitCitadel

v1.0

Check out our latest progress update: ...

2025-08-12T02:03:18Z

Check out our latest progress update:

https://geyser.fund/project/medschlr/posts/view/4900?hero=dreamgradaca

We are currently building MedSchlr using @npub1s3h…75wz's ...

2025-06-26T22:18:36Z

In reply to nevent1q…2vpu
_________________________

We are currently building MedSchlr using GitCitadel (npub1s3h…75wz)'s Nostr native Alexandria to improve upon peer review of medical and health articles. Naturally, nostr provides an opportunity to change some of the negative incentives of scientific publishing. In July, we plan to engage with health professionals, researchers, and health advocates to enhance Medschlr’s preliminary build and apply for future grant funding. You can check out our Geyser page for more: https://geyser.fund/project/medschlr

🎙️MedSchlr June 2025 Project Update: Student Recruitment ...

2025-06-26T21:46:01Z

🎙️MedSchlr June 2025 Project Update: Student Recruitment & Educational Progress
https://geyser.fund/project/medschlr/posts/view/4696?hero=dreamgradaca

Nostr event nevent1qqspqufuvcd5q7k452p9u3xwawga36w0qvjx77ly4al5dlcr3g768uszyr74lqmm0qlqd2yrhvng67g64zdq4m0nq2ff5lydd3c5aelhkc56ya4kw50

2025-06-20T20:55:34Z

Our Geyser lightning address is up & running!

@npub19ma…axkl , thank you for bringing this to our attention. ...

2025-06-14T18:31:26Z

In reply to nevent1q…ltzw
_________________________

vinney...axkl (npub19ma…axkl) , thank you for bringing this to our attention. We are currently working with Alby and Geyser to resolve the technical issue. In the meantime, you can send sats directly to our Lightning address, MedSchlr (npub1l40…mh7n) which can be found on our profile. We greatly appreciate your support.

You can also zap our npub 🙂

2025-06-10T23:37:59Z

In reply to nevent1q…ys60
_________________________

You can also zap our npub 🙂

🎉 The MedSchlr Geyser page is now live! Grateful for the ...

2025-06-10T14:40:52Z

🎉 The MedSchlr Geyser page is now live! Grateful for the donations that made this possible.

Looking forward to our upcoming meeting with undergraduate students and devs from GitCitadel (nprofile…wr46) this Thursday to plan summer activities and continue development of our nostr client built using #Alexandria.

For those interested in following our journey:

- 🔗 Connect with MedSchlr on #nostr.
- 💝 Support our summer development work and help strengthen future grant applications by contributing via our donation page: https://geyser.fund/project/medschlr

nosfabrica (nprofile…l5sd)

🎧 Fresh off the mic: Dive into our newest podcast interview on ...

2025-06-08T14:47:44Z

🎧 Fresh off the mic: Dive into our newest podcast interview on Plebchain Radio (nprofile…c2lz) to learn about the development team, ideas around MedSchlr and more. A huge thank you to AviBurra (nprofile…97tp) and QW (nprofile…d97e) for having us on and the nosfabrica (nprofile…fzd2) team for helping us grow MedSchlr's vision through the SALUD #nostr health app challenge! 🙏 #DocChain #MedNostr #Alexandria

quoting
nevent1q…n2kx
Plebchain Radio (nprofile…23yj) Block 115 Confirmed.

AviBurra (nprofile…0q3a) and I enjoyed a trip through academia while perusing the vast library of Nostorians.

But really…. We had a great time zooming in on the complexity being built on simplicity.

We would like to thank Laeserin (nprofile…0pyh), liminal 🦠 (nprofile…8q9g), ChipTuner (nprofile…8nhs) & coachemma (nprofile…y78k) for dissecting GitCitadel, Alexandria and MedSchlr.

It is a big brain idea and we are here for it.

For those who listened live, we thank you.

For those who listen to the recording, make your presence felt on fountain_app (nprofile…xpwv) and maybe even hit the subscribe button and support our mission to drive Nostr + Bitcoin Culture.

https://fountain.fm/episode/dmME39PLWgAkIcSlyckq

We have 7 days to raise $210 to go live on Geyser! This will fund ...

2025-06-07T02:02:27Z

We have 7 days to raise $210 to go live on Geyser!

This will fund students, developers, and healthcare professionals working with us to change medical knowledge incentives and enable transparency. The future of medical knowledge is decentralized, accessible, and community-driven.

We're partnering with GitCitadel (nprofile…were) to make this vision reality.

https://geyser.fund/project/medschlr

🎉 Thrilled to announce we tied for third place alongside the ...

2025-06-06T15:50:55Z

🎉 Thrilled to announce we tied for third place alongside the awesome Wellness Ally team ( vveerrgg (nprofile…dsd0) megistus (nprofile…gnrf) ) in the nosfabrica (nprofile…pnlv) nostr healthcare app challenge! Kudos to the other top winners! Looking forward to advancing healthcare innovation through our collaboration with GitCitadel (nprofile…3mnf) on health and medical evidence/knowledge publishing. Onward and upward! 💪🏥 #HealthTech #Innovation

quoting
nevent1q…6ptj
Congrats to all the winners! Thanks to you, Nostr has become the place for health care!

thesimplekid (nprofile…zhu4) RunStr -> 8 million sats
Tim Bouma (nprofile…mpr0) Safebox -> 4 million sats
vveerrgg (nprofile…c6ka) megistus (nprofile…tkyy) Wellness Ally -> 2 million sats
coachemma (nprofile…n42x) liminal 🦠 (nprofile…qt7j) MedSchlr -> 2 million sats

Let's keep pushing!

Hey thank you for responding. Emailed support to explain the ...

2025-05-24T22:37:36Z

In reply to nevent1q…4lfj
_________________________

Hey thank you for responding. Emailed support to explain the issue in more detail to see which email can be verified.

Hi @nprofile…yr67, we've been trying to go through the ...

2025-05-24T00:49:57Z

Hi metamick (nprofile…yr67), we've been trying to go through the Geyser setup process but have been encountering a problem with email verification

cc coachemma (nprofile…qmwj)

Will have a Geyser page & dedicated lightning address soon!

2025-05-21T22:35:23Z

In reply to nevent1q…mph8
_________________________

Will have a Geyser page & dedicated lightning address soon!

We are excited to present MedSchlr, a medical and health ...

2025-05-21T21:46:38Z

We are excited to present MedSchlr, a medical and health literature knowledge base for the #Nosfabrica challenge! Built on top of #Alexandria by GitCitadel (nprofile…xkmf), our platform aims to create a collaborative environment, where healthcare professionals and individuals can learn and share medical knowledge together.