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Contribution of hippocrates to medicine
Contribution of hippocrates to medicine
Contribution of hippocrates to medicine
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Greek Influence on Modern Medicine and Health
The healing of an individual to temporarily remove pain in order for peace, has been an objective for centuries from Egyptians to Greeks. Ancient Greece has influenced in the knowledge of medicine and health modern society of today. The arrival of philosophy came before medicine causing them to be put together which was asserted by Alcmaeon a physician and philosopher. In the field of science, who has had the most impact and known as the Father of Medicine is Hippocrates. Hippocrates made noteworthy observations that influenced the field of science for the health of each individual, not only for his time period but for every single one after.
From the beginning medicine was connected to the art of philosophy, one could not exist without the other. Before Hippocrates came Alcmaeon with the idea of medicine and natural philosophy together, “…he was the first to create what may be called a philosophy of medicine” (Miller 311). Alcmaeon brought up the concept, health is a form in where each power is equally stable. These powers include “…the moist, the dry, the cold, the hot, the bitter, the sweet, and the rest” (Miller 310). If one power were to overcome the others that would result in disease or sickness. In the world today each individual must keep a stable diet to maintain a healthy body. If a person takes in more food than necessary that results in illness of the stomach, which is a stomach ache. For sweet, if the body of an individual does not produce insulin to break down sugar to keep balance, then that results in diabetes. The environment plays a role on how these powers affect an individual. When the external environment is too sunny a person must put on sunscreen in order to...
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...be two separated studies. Hippocrates the Father of Medicine, served as a guide to how to deal with certain illnesses since was the first to observe and write down the symptoms plus the signs the patient showed. Also, Hippocrates came about with Ascultation, which one is to listen to the body for any abnormal functions. Health was reach through other ways such as women need a male in their life in order to keep their sanity. Faith-healing from the god of healing was looked towards by many people before the advancements in medicine. From the start of ancient times the idea of seeing the well-being of others and settling curiosity has brought up modern world health innovations. Such as, free vaccinations for those in poverty, medicine in order to either cure or temporarily relieve pain, and technology to help with a improved diagnosis of a possible disease or illness.
In modern medicine when an ailment arises it can be quickly diagnosed, attributed to a precise bacteria, virus, or body system, and treated with medication, surgery or therapy. During the time before rational medical thought, this streamlined system of treatment was unheard of, and all complaints were attributed to the will of the multitude of commonly worshiped Greek gods (Greek Medicine 1). It was during the period of Greek rationalism that a perceptible change in thought was manifested in the attitudes towards treating disease. Ancient Greece is often associated with its many brilliant philosophers, and these great thinkers were some of the first innovators to make major developments in astrology, physics, math and even medicine. Among these academics was Hippocrates, one of the first e...
Hippocrates (c. 460-377 BC) was born on the Aegean island of Cos, Greece. He learned his medical practices from his father, Heracleides, and Ancient Greek physician Herodicos of Selymbria. Like many big Greek names of the time, Hippocrates was thought to have come from the Gods. He was considered a descendent of Asclepios, the God of Medicine. Two major creations of Hippocrates have upheld the biggest influence on medical history. The peak of his career was during the Peloponnesian War (431-404 B.C), where his healing tactics helped Athenian warriors (“Hippocrates”, 1998).
To conclude, medicine of this time was so sad that death was inevitable. They couldn’t blame the doctors or even themselves for the cause of all these diseases because they didn’t really know what to do. Doctors were experimenting and taking lives but not learning from their ineffective practices like bleeding or leeching. Religion was probably the best possible choice for that time.
Although he lived four centuries before the birth of Christ, a man named Hippocrates recorded the symptoms of diseases we still see to this day. Known as the “Father of Medicine” (Hippocrates), Hippocrates was an ancient physician who studied and recorded his observances of the body’s infections and physiology. He set forth the foundation for future physicians, and in doing so, is accredited for our knowledge of infectious diseases in earlier centuries. During this time however, many believed the earth and its inhabitants were composed of four general elements: air, water, fire, and dirt. They also believed that any one person who fell ill was being punished by the gods. As a foresighted thinker though, Hippocrates encouraged the idea that humans became ill due to natural causes. In that wisdom, he recorded all his observances of his patients and their illnesses, taking careful note of the bodily symptoms and their progression.
Hippocrates used his knowledge of natural healing to help many people recover from what ails them in an attempt to; also, learn more of people’s sicknesses. Hippocrates once thoroughly examined the king of Macedonia, who was very sick at the time, and aided him in “recovering from tuberculosis”- which he did recover from (World Biography, 4).
The Romans used both scientific and mythological methods in their medicine. By adopting the methods of Greek medicine; the Romans obtained a solid foundation. They copied Hippocrates, who separated the study of medicine from philosophy and had an overall approach to the health of humans. Hippocrates also observed the habits and environment of humans to accurately determine illnesses and discover treatments. The Romans adapted the Hippocratic method and combined it with mythical and religious views. The Romans used Greek methods, and also included prayers and offerings to the gods. Although all gods had healing powers, Aesculapius, the god of healing, was the most important.
Schopick, Julia. Hippocrates was right: Treat people, not their disease. 26 June 2000. http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2000/06/26/hlca0626.htm 23 Nov. 2004
Our arrogance leads us to believe that we know the most about health care but the ancient people, who lived in this country before us, knew more than we are willing to give them credit for. "Their medicine was combination of faith, blind luck and relying on the good earth -- relying on what was there" (Howard, 2000. P.2)
Looking through these times, medicine slowly advanced over the past centuries. Native Americans where the main source of these new advancements and helped contribute to the Europeans and colonial medicine. Although remedies and herbs were their from of medicine during these early times this was there way of restoring health and helping medicine evolve to where they are today.
Many different cultures have tried different methods as to find out about the causes of disease and how to treat different kinds of diseases. Various countries have come up with alternate cures and treatments for various diseases. These ancient societies compromise of China, Greece, Egypt and South America. They practiced a wide range of cures for their patients, and they specialize in different fields. For example, meditation and acupuncture were practices in China. Dissection, operations and drug therapy were also performed. But how did theses societies – who did not have as much technology as today – found out about the different illnesses and their cures?
Hippocrates succeeded Alcmaeon and rejected the superstitious ideas of priests being the only healers. He founded a medical school and taught his students that since disease came from something natural, it must be treated by natural means. He believed that the body was able to heal itself by the power of healing of nature...
The most important and influential discovery was the practice of surgery. With this invention, human life became more sophisticated, humans lived longer, and we obtained a knowledge of ourselves sufficient enough to break the boundaries built by ignorance. Lacking prescription drugs, accurate tools, computer technology, and any background experience to build from, our ancestors struggled to learn how to repair the human body. They did an suprisingly competent job of treating the sick and injured. Some of the medical technology developed in ancient times surpassed anything available in the modern world until the 18th century or 19th century. In eras wherein religious views took precedence over medicine and logic, surgical advancement was difficult. The knowledge we have now was obtained from these people's exploits.
Hippocrates was a Greek physician that left a legacy that existed during his lifetime in Classical Greece and continues today. His moral and ethical standards were the foundation of his teachings, along with his meticulous writings concerning the study of the human body. He firmly believed that poor health and disease were the result of a natural process that could be discovered and cured through careful clinical reasoning and observations. Hippocrates travelled throughout Greece teaching and describing disease symptoms, and taught doctors how to analyze and treat specific illnesses or diseases. Hippocrates’s accomplishments give him the respect from doctors and medical professionals around the world that continues even today.
As the centuries unrolled and new civilizations appeared, cultural, artistic, and medical developments shifted toward the new centers of power. A reversal of the traditional search for botanical drugs occurred in Greece in the fourth century BC, when Hippocrates (estimated dates, 460-377 BC), the "Father of Medicine," became interested in inorganic salts as medications.
After the industrial revolution in the 18th century in Europe and America, there was the rapid industrial and economic growth in the 19th century, which in turn caused various scientific discoveries and various invention therefore making more progress in identifying illnesses and developing modes of treatment and cure, this was where modern medicine started. After the industrial revolution there were more industries, which in turn created a lot of work-related diseases and poor hygiene, also as the cities began to grow larger, more communicable diseases began to increase, cases like typhoid and cholera became epidemics. As well, due to the changes occurring, more and more people became more aware and since there was democracy there became an increase in demand for health care. There were also the wars that occurred, causing injuries which needed to be treated. Modern medicine evolves to solve the problems of the society at a given time and various advances in this mode of health care has occurred over the years. It has been seen that modern medicine is a positive influence in the society today for various reasons, the goal of the modern medicine is to achieve good health of the citizens, and modern medicine is experimental which is capable of advanced diagnosis. Likewise, modern medicine has an effect on the social and economic state of the modern society. Modern medicine is understood as the science of treating, diagnosing or even preventing illnesses using improved sophisticated technology. This mode of treatment involves a variety of methods, using diet, exercise, treatment by drugs or even surgery.