Steven Wells, RIP

Yesterday, Philadelphia lost one of its best writers.  Steven Wells was an acerbic, witty, foul-mouthed, and brilliant music journalist.  Born in the UK, in Swindon, in 1960, he made a name for himself as a poet in the early '80's punk scene.  Later, he moved to London and wrote for NME (New Musical Express) where he found his journalistic voice (usually screaming and swearing). 

He moved to Philadelphia (don't ask me when, it seems like he's always been here) and began writing for the Philadelphia Weekly, usually covering music but often just writing about things that annoyed him--and they were almost always things that annoyed the rest of us as well.  He also wrote a sports column for The Guardian. 

In 2006, he began chronicling his battle against Hodgkin's lymphoma, a form of lymphatic cancer.  He wrote not only of how the disease affected him, but he also gave an honest account of a patient traveling through the US healthcare system.  While uncovering surreal bureaucratic scenes that seemed more appropriate for a Burroughs or Kafka story, he also wrote of "more love, affection and staggeringly efficient professionalism from amazing doctors and incredible nurses than you could possibly believe."

Clearly there is need to reform the healthcare system in this country.  That is evident.  We must create a system that prominently focuses on preventing and managing chronic diseases, and ensure that everyone has access to healthcare.  One thing we cannot lose sight of, though, in the dash to reimagine what healthcare looks like in the US, is the need to foster an environment that encourages and rewards the risks involved in discovering innovative treatments and medicines for diseases like cancer, Alzheimer's, and HIV/AIDS.   

Wells will be missed by many.  I imagine he would probably be appalled--but maybe ironically proud--that he is being eulogized in a corporate blog post.