Healthcare Ch. 1

Ways to promote physical wellness:

• Having a well balanced diet

• regular exercise

• routine physical examinations and immunizations

• regular dental and vision examinations

• avoidance of alcohol, drugs, or caffeine

• avoidance of environmental contaminants and risky sexual behaviors

peoples’ contributions to healthcare:

1. Anton Van Leeuwenhoek, after discovering a book about microscopes, began building microscopes that were magnified more than 200 times. The microscopes had clearer and brighter images than were available at the time.

2. Elizabeth Blackwell became the first female physician in the United States in 1849, as well as started the first Women’s Medical College in New York in 1868.

3. Marie Curie isolated radium in 1910.

4. Wilhelm Roentgen first discovered X-rays in 1895.

5. Gabriel Fahrenheit created the first mercury thermometer in 1714.

6. Robert Koch, also known as the “Father of Microbiology” developed the culture plate method to identify pathogens and in 1882 isolated the bacteria that caused tuberculosis.

7. Rene Laennec invented the stethoscope in 1816.

8. William Harvey described the circulation of blood to and from the heart in 1628.

9. Florence Nightingale was the founder of modern nursing and established efficient sanitary nursing units during the Crimean War in 1854, as well as began the professional education of nurses.

10. Louis Pasteur provided many discoveries to the practice of medicine, such as creating the vaccine to rabies, pasteurization of milk to kill bacteria, and proving that microorganisms cause disease.

Cost Containment - Finding sufficient ways to use money in healthcare and make sure none of it goes to waste. Some examples would be the aging population and technological advances. Technological advances would be the cost of doing high-dollar surgeries every day for thousands upon thousands of dollars, for patients who will most likely need lifelong care afterwards.

Mental and intellectual health - Wellness that is promoted by being creative, logical, curious, and open-minded, as well as using common sense and continually learning by questioning and evaluating situations.

Pandemic - When an outbreak of a disease affects a wide span population, sometimes reaching national or worldwide proportions.

Ionization Therapy - a type of therapy that uses special machines to produce negatively charged air particles or ions. It’s used to treat common respiratory disorders.

Integrative Care - Uses both mainstream medical treatment and CAM therapies to treat patients. (i.e., chronic pain is treated with both medications and CAM therapies that encourage relaxation.)

Chinese Medicine Practitioner - Uses the ancient holistic-based healing practice based on the belief that life energy (chi) flows through an invisible system of meridians (pathways), linking the organs together and connecting them to the universe.

Acupressure - Pressure applied with the fingers, palms, thumbs, or elbows to specific pressure points of the body to stimulate and regulate the flow of energy.

Antioxidants - Nutritional therapy that encourages the use of substances called antioxidants to prevent or inhibit oxidation (a chemical process in which a substance is joined to oxygen) and neutralize free radicals (molecules that can damage the body cells by altering the genetic code). Some examples are vitamins A, C, E, and selenium.

Meditation - Uses muscle relaxation to quiet the mind.

Sir Alexander Fleming discovered Penicillin in 1928.

Sigmund Freud conducted studies which formed the basis for psychology and psychiatry.

Ancient Romans started the first health and sanitation systems.

Florence Nightingale began the professional education of nurses.

Hippocrates is the father of medicine.

Clara Barton was the founder of the American Red Cross.

Joseph Lister was the first person to start using disinfectants and antiseptics during surgeries in 1865 to prevent infections.

Benjamin Franklin invented bifocals and eyeglasses.

Edward Jenner created the vaccine for smallpox in 1796.

Jonas Salk developed the polio vaccine using dead polio virus in 1952.

H5N1 is the virus that causes avian flu.

The first test tube baby, Louise Brown, was born in England in 1978.

Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) was identified as a disease in 1981.

Birth control pills were first approved by the FDA in 1960.

The first kidney transplant occurred in 1954 and was done by Joseph Murray.