Knowledge is power; as such, we aren't so fond of sharing it. Why teach what can be sold? Specialized knowledge also requires specialized skill; you don't want any random person providing, for instance, surgical services or legal advice. It takes a lot of effort and money to become a professional and, for that price, you want a return on investment. Which leads us back to the first point.
Yet, we do educate people, don't we? Our school system is designed to empower youth to succeed in life. We take it for granted, really; reading, writing and arithmetic skills, historical context, basic anatomy, hygiene, science, civics, etc. all come from our public education system. This publicly provided (and publicly paid for) grounding in fundamentals allows for society to function.
Could we do more, though? Could we get more bang for our buck and reduce costs in the process? Looking at healthcare - is it possible to empower people more, provide them more knowledge, better access and more streamlined processes so that they can avoid becoming patients? We don't want the average bear doing surgery, but what about doing exercises at home, learning little tricks to make bigger differences? An easy example - if seniors sit up for a couple of minutes, then stand for a couple of minutes when they get up in the night to go to the washroom, they can reduce their risks of falling and thereby, reduce their chances of breaking bones. A simple piece of knowledge that could make a wealth of difference in our healthcare system.
Of course, we're doing some of that now. We can do even more; we can even do it online. It's where society's headed; the question is, what are we all doing to get there faster?
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