In a season of dinner parties and holiday gatherings, allow me to share with you my favorite dinner party question: What do you think was the first marker of civilization, and why?

Some of the more popular answers inevitably revolve around tools, weapons, the written word or religion. Every now and then, you’ll get a real zinger, like “the concept of inside jokes.” I love this question for two reasons: 1) you get a sense of what people value without necessarily limiting them to what they know about complex civilization; and 2) I get to share one of my favorite anecdotes.

Margaret Mead was an American cultural anthropologist in the 20th Century. She’s often credited with claiming that the first sign of civilization was neither tools, nor weapons, nor codes of law. Rather, Mead argued that the first sign of civilization was evidence of a healed human femur. The law of the jungle dictates that an animal with a broken femur will die due to the limitations caused by its injury. A healed femur, however, suggests compassion. Someone must have set the fracture, cared for the injured person and offered them protection as they recovered.

This story resonates with me not only because I love the concept of compassion as the basis for civilization (may we never outgrow the golden rule!), but also because of the work we do at Oasis Free Clinics, where compassion takes the form of high-quality, dignified medical, dental and vision care. I am a recent addition to the Oasis Board of Directors, but a longtime defender of health care as a human right. I’m proud to be a part of an organization that embodies this principle every day.

Now, allow me to pose a more provocative question: Would a healed femur still be the first marker of civilization if the patient had to show proof of income to receive the care which healed them? What if they had to sell most of what they owned to afford the care they received, or to be distanced from their loved ones even after they healed? What if we knew more about the people who were refused care, whose wounds weren’t healed?

I often think about the role of class in shaping who gets access to respectful healthcare, and perhaps more poignantly, who does not. While the idyllic dinner party assumption is that whoever this hypothetical prehistoric patient was, they received care merely because they were a part of a community, and by being a part of a community, they were deserving of care. The modern reality, however, is one steeped in complexities.

If health care were treated like a human right, then a person’s class, race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, legal status or education would not dictate whether they received high-quality care. However, the cultural approach to capitalism in the United States often leaves marginalized groups without resources or options for their health or wellbeing.

Take Bell Hooks’ seminal piece, “Where We Stand: Class Matters.” She approaches the topic of class in the U.S. as a byproduct of capitalism. She credits David Hilfiker with saying, “Neither modern capitalism nor economic imperative requires that necessities be distributed according to wealth.” Among these necessities, of course, is health care. According to Hooks it is the culture, not the principle, of American capitalism which determines that the market must thrive with little regard to ethics. In the case of healthcare, this culture can additionally create a market which at once both promotes harm (think tobacco sales or tanning beds), as well as limits access to timely, beneficial treatment (think health insurance). What a pickle!

If the public’s response to the last month of health care news tells us anything, it’s that many people are ready for change. If we want to see change, first let us consider: can the culture of US capitalism coexist with compassion, or at the very least, tolerate it?

I want to believe that it can. Oasis Free Clinics is a prime example of how this change has already taken root. We offer no-cost, whole-person medical, dental, vision, and mental health services to uninsured and under insured adults ages 18-64 in Midcoast Maine. At Oasis, there is no begging, or bartering, or billing. But. (But!) There is a bottom line. At Oasis, we act as the intermediary to capitalism in order to allow patients to receive dignified care. We are the ones who ask for donations so our patients can continue to focus on the thing that matters most: healing. (On that note, have you donated yet?)

The anecdote of the healed femur reminds us that, according to some, civilization began when someone cared for another. I choose to believe they did so not because of what they could gain, but because compassion demanded it. This holiday season, may we continue that tradition. Not just at the dinner table but in every corner of our community. Together, we can build a world where everyone has access to the care, and compassion, they deserve.

Brooke McNaughton is a member of the Oasis Free Clinics Board of Directors. Oasis Free Clinics is a nonprofit, no-cost primary care medical practice and dental clinic, providing patient-centered care to uninsured members of our community. For more information, call (207) 721-9277 or visit OasisFreeClinics.org.