Greeks were the earliest recorded civilization to have developed a medical method. The greatest/more famous of the Greek doctors was Hippocrates, now known as the father of modern medicine. Most of his work took place around 430 years BC. An era in which many people still turned to the spirits for problem resolutions, needs, and just about anything their hearts desired. Hippocrates and many other doctors actually branched away from traditional beliefs and began to question weather disease came from the supernatural. By taking their thirst of knowledge and their curiosity a step further Hippocrates and others were developing many different hypothesis and were questioning what not many had dared to question before. What for others may have seemed as absurd nonsense at the time may as well be the reason we ever developed the science of medicine.
Romans followed in the footsteps of the Greeks and contributed to their knowledge. This contribution took place somewhere around 146BC when Greece became a providence of the Roman Empire and the Romans began to take over. Roman medical development actually branched off of Greek knowledge by revising Greeks prior studies and theories and then adding to it by focusing on the improvement of the life of their people. Although much of what Ancient Romans came to learn and apply were not all their own studies they did give a great push to Ancient Greece medicine. Ancient Romans medical development along with every other development now a day is in one way or another a team effort.
The Ancient Egyptians seemed to be more off on their own yet on the same page. Ancient Egyptian archaeologists have found a well preserver poem discussing love and revealing the existence of early development of medicine.
"It is seven days from yesterday since I saw my love,
And sickness has crept over me,
My limbs have become heavy,
I cannot feel my own body.
If the master-physicians come to me,
I gain no comfort from their remedies.
And the priest-magicians have no cures,
My sickness is not diagnosed.
My love is better by far for me than my remedies.
She is more important to me than all the books of medicine." 1
Archaeologists have also found hieroglyphics on the doors of tombs signaling physicians who also passed away around the year 1500 BC. We all know the famous mummification processes which were actually once applied with the simple purpose of studying the the human body although many people thought wrongfully of it (and still do).
Eventually along with these three great Ancient civilizations, the rest of the world began to take interest in the subject of medicine and become more involved with it. As medicine continued to evolve, procedures intended to become easier became more complex. Diseases themselves became more complex as if our bodies intended to tell us how little we truly knew about them. Doctors capability to do more was challenged many times, but those great minds always seemed to pull through with it. Doctors kept impressing, and what was once seen as a miracle from the gods came to be seen as an expectation. Doctors were more than disappointed when they failed... they were actually punished!
It was during the golden era of medicine (20Th century) when medical technology and procedures began to grow at a fast rate that malpractice lawsuits were truly introduces. Before this century a great percentage of the people were quite ignorant about medicine and it's practice. It used to be that when something went wrong, people believed it had been god's will. However, when people saw that medical scientists intended to do more for them by trying to save limbs, invent x-rays, procedures, and high tech machinery, demands skyrocketed. People quickly became educated on the topic and realized they had some extent of power over certain events. People no longer settled for mistakes and were unhappy with anything that did not meet their expectations.
After the golden era, as years were added onto the history of medicine so were lawsuits. Many doctors and scientists focused on finding the cures/controls of illnesses, yet quite a few found a way to make even more money. Estetic procedures were introduced. People finally had the power to look however they wanted and were not willing to settle for anything less than perfection. Medical practitioners from all fields were put on the spotlight more intensely than
ever from the Golden Era and to the present.
The heroes who have saved human lives for thousands of years, the ones our ancestors trusted with their lives, are now seen as negligent people and fired for even the smallest mistake. The pressure on doctors in no longer to save or improve the quality of life of a person, but to keep in mind that they may loose their dream career in the case of an unhappy patient. All of this pressure is certain to make quite a few break, and either quit or retire at an early age. Such has been the case that although medical school is extremely competitive at the moment, our local hospitals and clinics are running on very few doctors.
Citations
2.) CQ. Researcher
(I still have to do the citations... I know!)
