Yesterday was a significant day for education in Texas. It was also a significant role model for health care, and we didn't even realize it.

HB 5 was signed into law yesterday. This legislation reforms public education at the high school level via revised testing, curriculum, and accountability. It was supported by TAMSA - Texans Advocating for Meaningful Student Assessments - a statewide, grassroots organization comprised of parents and other community members.

What is perhaps most intriguing about TAMSA is that it started as a group of eight moms from Austin and Houston who were concerned about state testing mandates. A group of angry moms turned into a movement that was a game changer in the Texas Legislature. Imagine that.

Now, take a moment to ponder what health care consumers could do with an effort like this. They could revolutionize health care.

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The date is May 8. For many, it’s just another day on the calendar. But for me, it’s more than just any old date. It is a day to remember two legends. It is a day to remember two people that had a huge impact on my world - for totally different reasons.

May 8 is bluesman Robert Johnson’s birthday. This year is the 101st anniversary of his birth. May 8 is also the date of Gilles Villeneuve’s death, now a somber 30 years ago.

This day brings joy in knowing what these two legends contributed to my world. But it also brings sadness with reflection on that sad day 30 years ago.

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Health care loves specialization. So does the world of health. Although this may allow clinicians and practitioners to become more focused on specific populations or procedures, it also creates a certain degree of fragmentation within the system. It forces a perceived necessity to do different things with different groups.

The broad expanse of health and health care is viewed as a cornucopia of disparate issues. Chronic medical conditions. Wellness. Fitness. Injury. Chronic pain. And countless other clinical entities.

We really have just one big health continuum. There is one common element to the health continuum - our daily battle against gravity.

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You can see it happen on either end of the continuum. And it happens all the way from white collar to blue collar, from elite athlete to couch potato, and all points in between.

Some people need to get out of their heads. And some people need to get into their heads.

I know plenty of people that are constantly existing within their own heads. They are mulling things over, pondering, obsessing about issues that are really non-issues and weighing the ramifications of the results of pondering those same issues that seem to be weighing heavily on … well, I think you get the idea. Paralysis of analysis prevents action and forward motion from taking place. Instead of just “doing”, there is drama. And lots of it.

Then there are the people who really do need to get into their own heads.

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