They're merely ideas to give versatility and utility to a healing class that doesn't have as many tools as other similar spec classes do. As for the health buff... We're talking from a group perspective, and your healer will be aware that your brief buff of health doesn't last forever, nor should it. It's a buffer so that they can get you back to where you need to be without resulting in your death. Properly speaking, you shouldn't be in any danger of dying once the buff wears off.

I don't even want the same tools. I'd be happy enough with other utility buffs that do something different, but impart an integral tool that is at least as equally useful. For example, what about some sort of ability that redirects damage from the group to a singular target, and at the same time lowers the amount of damage occurring? Almost like an illusory misdirection. I can see an Operative doing something like that. Or, what about some sort of buff that raises defense chance by the Operative lending some of their cloaking screen to a nearby ally, thus making that ally harder to hit as they flicker in and out of visibility? Just some examples of how you can have tools that make sense for an Operative to have without having them be forced to be identical to Sages/Sorcs. EDIT: I did not mean to leave poor Scoundrels out in the cold, but I am, alas, much more well versed with the Operative. And another thought... A large part of an Operative's healing is done by small droid aides. What if they had a droid that could inject a player (or players?) with some sort of chemical/medical solution that increased that player(s) health bar by a certain percentage or flat amount for a limited amount of time? Just some thoughts to get the ball rolling.

I haven't yet experienced endgame content, but I've been enjoying my Operative (pure medicine specialized) quite a bit. I agree wholeheartedly about the luxuries that are addon improvements. While I would love to have them, all things come in time and we didn't always have them in the past as MMO players. Though I have a few issues with the Operative as a healer (I've heard quite a bit about Op concerns as healers), I do love the concept and have been able to do some fun things. Few things are more fun than setting a bunch of small, spherical droids on a target and watch them inject/spray all sorts of fluids into/on them. I promise that isn't what it sounds like. And they sound really cute (beeping, chirping constantly). And though it isn't perfect, I like the energy management required to be a good Op healer. Once you understand how energy functions in correlation with your abilities and cooldowns, it's pretty easy to find your rhythm. I've been so taken with my Operative that I abandoned my Sorc (Lightning specced) to play her, and I'm looking forward to trying out the end content even if it's a little rough on Operatives. Some day, it will get better, and I'm not going to reroll just because things are a little tough right now. I think if Ops stick it out, we'll see some balancing for our specialization, and eventually, have all of those neat toys (mmmm, HoT tracking) that make healing easier.

Two things. I don't disagree with a majority of your post, but two things really got to me. First of all, you do not need mouseover healing to be good. If you're really that desperate to have mouseover healer to function, you need better reflexes. It's that simple. It shouldn't take you but a split second to target someone, and it shouldn't be the difference between life and death. That said, people need to understand that this is not WoW. SWtoR does not use the same engine, it's not even on the same playing field. Their graphics engine is a great deal more powerful, and more draining on older computer systems. WoW, even when it was newly released, had been coded to be kinder on older machines. That was what made it more accessible. In short, if you're experiencing such horrendous lag, turn your graphics down or invest in a new card/machine. Overall, a good post. The UI is a little... behind the times, and though it's primitive and lacking a few nice components, it will not make or break a good healer. Work with what you have, it's what good healers have always done. WoW didn't always have such a nice, clean UI, or an excessive number of addons to choose from, and yet, vanilla healers did just fine, tackling some of the hardest content in the game without the hand holding of addons that made things easier. Over time, things will get better, things will get easier. For now, use what you have and understand the game developers are still learning what works and what doesn't.

As a healer (Operative Medic, level 47), I've used Vector (DPS, functions like a Sith Marauder, mechanically) non-stop since getting him around level 29. I've yet to experience this issue personally, and have found that he is the best companion for my Medic to use (besides the fact that he's just awesome as a character) and very rarely do I experience threat issues with NPCs while my Medic heals him. The only time I have had issues was during AOE pulls where I'm doing large amounts of AOE damage myself to the NPCs. He tanks elites, strong mobs and normals like a pro on top of doing immense amounts of damage. I've used him for every mission to date. Maybe it's just you?