Overview of Medicine’s Origins, Social Impacts, Ethics and Trends

Overview of Medicine’s Origins, Social Impacts, Ethics and Trends
Miguel A. Cruz
Thomas Edison State College

Author Note
Miguel A. Cruz, Department of Pathology, Dwight Eisenhower Medical Center DDEAMC.
This essay was written as part of written assignment 4 for the course of Current Trends & Applications (2012-11-APS-401-OL009), Thomas Edison State College.
Correspondence concerning this essay should be addressed to Miguel A. Cruz, Department of Pathology, Dwight Eisenhower Medical Center, 300 Hospital Road
Fort Gordon, GA 30905-5650.
Contact: [e-mail]

Abstract
This paper explores many aspects of the medical field including its origins, benefits, disadvantages, current ethical-political considerations, media perception, historical trends, and future trajectory. This paper also takes into account the numerous instances where medicine has made significant contributions to mankind, while also considering the ethical challenges that the medical field has faced throughout time. The significance of the potential constructive and destructive fiscal effects of medical development is an ongoing subject that affects medicine in our time, and is also considered in this research

Overview of Medicine
Origins of Medicine
From the dawn of civilization every human culture has had medical beliefs in order to provide explanations to events such as illness, the miracle of birth, and the inevitable arrival of death. Since the dawn of time, the cause of many medical conditions were attributed to a more primal set of beliefs such as witchcraft, planetary influence, demonic possession, and the simple bestowment of divine will on a misfortunate individual. Some of these faiths and positions are still active and remain in practice in some places around the globe, but the development of medical technology alongside scientific knowledge has reformed and taken over mysticism in most geographical areas and society.
The earliest historical traces of

References: Association of American Medical Colleges (2012). Study Quantifies Economic Impact of Medical Research. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.aamc.org/newsroom/reporter/march2012/276856/research.html. [Last Accessed 08 Dec 2012]. American Association for the History of Medicine (). Origins of Medical Technique. [ONLINE] Available at: http://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2010/WHO_HSS_EHT_DIM_10.4_eng.pdf. [Last Accessed 13 Nov 2012] Eric Krakauer (1991). On Medicine and Politics*. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2589602/pdf/yjbm00051-0088.pdf. [Last Accessed 28 DEC 2012]. J Disabil (Nov 1998). Historical trends in biological and medical investigations of reading disabilities. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9813962. [Last Accessed 16 Jan 2013]. Kaiser Surveys (2011). Public Opinion on Medical Errors. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.kff.org/spotlight/mederrors/upload/Spotlight_Jan06_MedErrors.pdf. [Last Accessed 28 DEC 2012]. RJ Anderson (Jul 1995). Subspecialization in internal medicine: a historical review, an analysis, and proposals for change. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7598147. [Last Accessed 16 Jan 2013]. National Academy Press (2010). Institute of Medicien of the National Academies. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.ahrq.gov/research/iomqrdrreport/iomqrdrreport.pdf. [Last Accessed 16 Jan 2013]. The Open University (). History of Medicine. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.open.edu/openlearn/history-the-arts/history/history-science-technology-and-medicine/history-medicine/the-origins-ancient-medicine. [Last Accessed 08 Dec 2012]. U.S. National Library of Medicine (). Medicine History in Time. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd. [Last Accessed 08 Dec 2012].