Health and the People (Factors Only) Flashcards
(9 cards)
What role did the Government play in developing medicine?
Measures were introduced by the Mayor of London in an attempt to reduce the spread of the Great Plague.
Support for public health reforms, e.g. Public Health Acts (1848, 1875).
Funding for vaccination programs (e.g. compulsory smallpox vaccine 1853).
Legislation to improve hygiene and living conditions (e.g. sewer systems, clean water).
War often pushed governments to invest in medical research and services (e.g. WWI plastic surgery, NHS post-WWII).
What role did Religion play in developing medicine?
In the Middle Ages, the Church dominated medical thinking (e.g. illness as punishment from God, use of prayer).
Monasteries preserved and copied medical texts and maintained clean environments.
Sometimes opposed progress, such as resisting dissection or challenging Galen.
Islamic medicine preserved and advanced classical knowledge (e.g. Avicenna’s Canon of Medicine).
What role did Religion play in hindering the development of medicine?
By accepting the work of Galen as fact, the Catholic Church outlawed dissection and used Galen’s work to teach medical students in universities.
As a result of this medical progress was hindered greatly, until the Renaissance, when key figures such as Vesalius and Harvey began to challenge Galen’s ideas.
How did individuals play an important role in developing medicine?
Key figures often challenged accepted views or pioneered new approaches:
Hippocrates & Galen – ancient theories that dominated for centuries.
Vesalius – anatomy.
Harvey – circulation of the blood.
Jenner – vaccination.
Pasteur & Koch – germ theory.
Nightingale – nursing reforms.
Bevan – founding the NHS.
What role did Science and Technology play in the development of medicine?
Enabled more accurate understanding and treatment:
Microscope – germ theory.
Printing press – spread of medical ideas.
X-rays and anaesthetics – improved surgery.
Penicillin – first antibiotic (Fleming, Florey & Chain).
Scientific method helped challenge old beliefs and develop evidence-based medicine.
How did War help medicine develop?
Drove innovation under pressure:
Improved surgery, anaesthesia, and prosthetics.
Field hospitals led to advances in trauma care.
Government prioritised medical services (e.g. WWI blood transfusions, WWII and the NHS).
However, wars also damaged infrastructure and disrupted public health.
How did Communication help medicine develop?
Vital for the spread of ideas:
Printing press (from 15th century) allowed wider access to texts like Vesalius’ anatomical drawings.
Journals and medical societies helped share discoveries.
Improved travel and mail helped spread vaccinations and public health messages.
Pasteur and Koch’s rivalry led to both individuals improving each other’s work.
What role did Luck/Chance play in the development of medicine?
Sometimes discoveries happened unexpectedly:
Pare ran out of oil and used his knowledge of herbal remedies to change the way gunshot wounds were treated.
Jenner noticed milkmaids’ immunity to smallpox.
Fleming discovered penicillin by chance.
However, luck often needed to be followed up by scientific method and resources to have an impact.
