The Rise and Fall of Modern Medicine

The Rise and Fall of Modern Medicine
Author: James Le Fanu
Publisher: Carroll & Graf Pub
Total Pages: 426
Release: 2000
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780786707324

Argues that the pace of medical discoveries has slowed in the last twenty-five years due to excessive emphasis on the social and political aspects of health care, and to controversies caused by ethical issues.

The Development of Modern Medicine in Non-Western Countries

The Development of Modern Medicine in Non-Western Countries
Author: Hormoz Ebrahimnejad
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 500
Release: 2009-01-13
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1134062478

The history of medicine in non-European countries has often been characterized by the study of their native "traditional" medicine, such as (Galenico-)Islamic medicine, and Ayurvedic or Chinese medicine. Modern medicine in these countries, on the other hand, has usually been viewed as a Western corpus of knowledge and institution, juxtaposing or replacing the native medicine but without any organic relation with the local context. By discarding categories like Islamic, Indian, or Chinese medicine as the myths invented by modern (Western) historiography in the aftermath of the colonial and post colonial periods, the book proposes to bridge the gap between Western and 'non-Western' medicines, opening a new perspective in medical historiography in which 'modern medicine' becomes an integral part of the history of medicine in non-European countries. Through essays and case studies of medical modernization, this volume particularly calls into question the categorization of ‘Western’ and ‘non-Western’ medicine and challenges the idea that modern medicine could only be developed in its Western birthplace and then imported to and practised as such to the rest of the world. Against the concept of a ‘project’ of modernization at the heart of the history of modern medicine in non-Western countries, the chapters of this book describe ‘processes’ of medical development by highlighting the active involvement of local elements. The book’s emphasis is thus on the ‘modernization’ or ‘construction’ of modern medicine rather that on the diffusion of ‘modern medicine’ as an ontological entity beyond the West.

Evidence-Based Medicine and the Changing Nature of Health Care

Evidence-Based Medicine and the Changing Nature of Health Care
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 202
Release: 2008-09-06
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309113695

Drawing on the work of the Roundtable on Evidence-Based Medicine, the 2007 IOM Annual Meeting assessed some of the rapidly occurring changes in health care related to new diagnostic and treatment tools, emerging genetic insights, the developments in information technology, and healthcare costs, and discussed the need for a stronger focus on evidence to ensure that the promise of scientific discovery and technological innovation is efficiently captured to provide the right care for the right patient at the right time. As new discoveries continue to expand the universe of medical interventions, treatments, and methods of care, the need for a more systematic approach to evidence development and application becomes increasingly critical. Without better information about the effectiveness of different treatment options, the resulting uncertainty can lead to the delivery of services that may be unnecessary, unproven, or even harmful. Improving the evidence-base for medicine holds great potential to increase the quality and efficiency of medical care. The Annual Meeting, held on October 8, 2007, brought together many of the nation's leading authorities on various aspects of the issues - both challenges and opportunities - to present their perspectives and engage in discussion with the IOM membership.

The Making of Modern Medicine

The Making of Modern Medicine
Author: Michael Bliss
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 114
Release: 2011-01-15
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0226059030

At the dawn of the twenty-first century, we have become accustomed to medical breakthroughs and conditioned to assume that, regardless of illnesses, doctors almost certainly will be able to help—not just by diagnosing us and alleviating our pain, but by actually treating or even curing diseases, and significantly improving our lives. For most of human history, however, that was far from the case, as veteran medical historian Michael Bliss explains in The Making of Modern Medicine. Focusing on a few key moments in the transformation of medical care, Bliss reveals the way that new discoveries and new approaches led doctors and patients alike to discard fatalism and their traditional religious acceptance of suffering in favor of a new faith in health care and in the capacity of doctors to treat disease. He takes readers in his account to three turning points—a devastating smallpox outbreak in Montreal in 1885, the founding of the Johns Hopkins Hospital and Medical School, and the discovery of insulin—and recounts the lives of three crucial figures—researcher Frederick Banting, surgeon Harvey Cushing, and physician William Osler—turning medical history into a fascinating story of dedication and discovery. Compact and compelling, this searching history vividly depicts and explains the emergence of modern medicine—and, in a provocative epilogue, outlines the paradoxes and confusions underlying our contemporary understanding of disease, death, and life itself.

Generic

Generic
Author: Jeremy A. Greene
Publisher: JHU Press
Total Pages: 375
Release: 2014-10-27
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 1421414945

The turbulent history of generic pharmaceuticals raises powerful questions about similarity and difference in modern medicine. Generic drugs are now familiar objects in clinics, drugstores, and households around the world. We like to think of these tablets, capsules, patches, and ointments as interchangeable with their brand-name counterparts: why pay more for the same? And yet they are not quite the same. They differ in price, in place of origin, in color, shape, and size, in the dyes, binders, fillers, and coatings used, and in a host of other ways. Claims of generic equivalence, as physician-historian Jeremy Greene reveals in this gripping narrative, are never based on being identical to the original drug in all respects, but in being the same in all ways that matter. How do we know what parts of a pill really matter? Decisions about which differences are significant and which are trivial in the world of therapeutics are not resolved by simple chemical or biological assays alone. As Greene reveals in this fascinating account, questions of therapeutic similarity and difference are also always questions of pharmacology and physiology, of economics and politics, of morality and belief. Generic is the first book to chronicle the social, political, and cultural history of generic drugs in America. It narrates the evolution of the generic drug industry from a set of mid-twentieth-century "schlock houses" and "counterfeiters" into an agile and surprisingly powerful set of multinational corporations in the early twenty-first century. The substitution of bioequivalent generic drugs for more expensive brand-name products is a rare success story in a field of failed attempts to deliver equivalent value in health care for a lower price. Greene’s history sheds light on the controversies shadowing the success of generics: problems with the generalizability of medical knowledge, the fragile role of science in public policy, and the increasing role of industry, marketing, and consumer logics in late-twentieth-century and early twenty-first century health care.

The Future of Public Health

The Future of Public Health
Author: Committee for the Study of the Future of Public Health
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 240
Release: 1988-01-15
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309581907

"The Nation has lost sight of its public health goals and has allowed the system of public health to fall into 'disarray'," from The Future of Public Health. This startling book contains proposals for ensuring that public health service programs are efficient and effective enough to deal not only with the topics of today, but also with those of tomorrow. In addition, the authors make recommendations for core functions in public health assessment, policy development, and service assurances, and identify the level of government--federal, state, and local--at which these functions would best be handled.

The Modern Hospital

The Modern Hospital
Author: Rifat Latifi
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 457
Release: 2019-01-14
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 3030013944

The rapidly growing developments in medicine and science in the last few decades has evoked a greater need for modern institutions, with modern medicine, advanced technologies, and cutting edge research. Today, the modern hospital is a highly competitive, multibillion dollar industry that plays a large role in our healthcare systems. Far different from older institutions, modern hospitals juggle the dynamics of running a business that proves financially fruitful and sustainable, with maintaining and staying ahead of medical developments and offering the best possible patient care. This comprehensive book explores all aspects of the inner workings of a modern hospital, from research and technology driven treatment and patient centered care, to the organizational, functional, architectural, and ergonomic aspects of the business. The text is organized into three parts. The first part covers a number of important aspects of the modern hospital including hospital transformation over the centuries, the new medical world order, overall concept, academic mission and economics of new healthcare. Additionally, experts in the field address issues such as modern design functionally and creating an environment that is ergonomically friendly, technologically advanced, and easy to navigate for both worker and patient. Other topics covered include, the role of genomics and nano-technologies, controversies that come with introducing new technologies, the world-wide pharmaceutical industry, electronic medical health records, informatics, and quality of patient care. Part II addresses nine specific elements of modernization of the hospital that deal with high acuity, life and death situations, and complex medical and surgical diseases. These chapters cover the organization of new emergency departments, trauma room, hybrid operating rooms, intensive care units, radiology, pharmaceutical and nutritional support, and most essential, patient and public relation services. These nine elements reflect the most important and most visible indicators of modernization and transformation of the hospital. Part III examines and highlights the team approach as a crucial component of the transformation, as well as specific perspectives on the modern hospital from nurses, physicians, surgeons and administrators. Finally, a chapter dedicated to patient perspective is also presented. The Modern Hospital provides an all-inclusive review of the hospital industry. It will serve as a valuable resource for administrators, clinicians, surgeons, nurses, and researchers. All chapters will be written by practicing experts in their fields and include the most up-to-date scientific and clinical information.

Modern Methods of Clinical Investigation

Modern Methods of Clinical Investigation
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 241
Release: 1990-02-01
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309042860

The very rapid pace of advances in biomedical research promises us a wide range of new drugs, medical devices, and clinical procedures. The extent to which these discoveries will benefit the public, however, depends in large part on the methods we choose for developing and testing them. Modern Methods of Clinical Investigation focuses on strategies for clinical evaluation and their role in uncovering the actual benefits and risks of medical innovation. Essays explore differences in our current systems for evaluating drugs, medical devices, and clinical procedures; health insurance databases as a tool for assessing treatment outcomes; the role of the medical profession, the Food and Drug Administration, and industry in stimulating the use of evaluative methods; and more. This book will be of special interest to policymakers, regulators, executives in the medical industry, clinical researchers, and physicians.