The current health care debate and being involved in helping to manage elderly relatives’ health care needs, particularly the ritual of taking prescription medications have primarily informed this installation.
The U.S. total health expenditures in 2009 was $2.5 trillion, which translates to$8,086 per person or approximately 17.6 % of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Most other developed countries spend less than 10% of GDP on health care costs. In most cases, the majority of health care costs are incurred in the last two years of a person’s life.
As individuals age, their health tends to become increasingly complex, often to the point in their latter years of life that they no longer have the capacity to manage and understand their health care needs. According to one study, adult children caregivers are losing almost $3 trillion in lost wages, pension and Social Security benefits in the aggregate due to their care giving efforts.
Among older Americans (aged 60 and over), more than 76% used two or more prescription drugs and 37% used five or more. The total prescription sales in the United States reached more than $307 billion in 2010, $135 billion more than in 2001. Total prescription volume in 2010 was $3.99 billion. The number one drug by dollar sales in 2010 was Lipitor (Pfizer) at $7,244,084,266. The number one drug by volume sales in 2010 was Hydrocodone/APAP (Watson) at 58,205,644.
The Pill Series No. 2 – installation
Take (Video installation–looped video approximately 2 minutes), 50 inch TV mounted to the wall, 2010
Pill No. 1v 55 cm x 25cm x 18cm , painted wood sculpture, 2010
Pill No. 1$ 45 cm x 23.5cm x 17 cm, painted wood sculpture, 2010
