History of Health Science

The history of health science is a captivating topic, dating back to ancient times as every world culture developed its own form of health science. It is only natural that people would experiment with different methods and remedies to treat illness or injury. Asking for spiritual guidance by the medicine man or shaman was typically used in conjunction with herbs that were found to be effective through the process of trial and error. The Ancient Greeks and Egyptians were the first to actually have written evidence of their medical treatments that could be studied by future generations.

The Greek, Hippocrates, initiated the Hippocratic Oath, a motto and creed that doctors follow to this day; its main message is that doctors will do no harm and only try to help when treating others. Greek practices have been the foundation for medical treatment in the western hemisphere while the eastern hemisphere relies more heavily on practices that have been passed on by China and India.

Through the ages, innovation has been the standard in making progress in health science. While the Greeks made headway initially, the Romans went on to make many advances of their own with groundbreaking efforts in surgery and sanitation methods. Later, the Islamic culture made an impact, inspired by Avicenna who promoted the importance of having data and evidence as well as trials when developing pharmaceuticals. In the 19th century with the birth of the Enlightenment came changes in the world of health science as the human anatomy was studied intensely, revealing a new frontier of knowledge. Microorganisms came to light, genetics, and the theory of evolution all played a role in the ever-changing medical research. Such greats as Louis Pasteur, Florence Nightingale, John Snow, and Claude Be
ard came to the forefront at this time period, making their own additions to the field of health science, promoting practices that are followed to this day.

In modern times, it has been the age of technology with an intense explosion of new devices and daring techniques that are applied to treatment and enhancing the lives of human beings. Evidence is a must with a reliance on irrefutable data. A holistic approach is often encouraged as well, treating every aspect of a person. The mental, emotional, and physical well-being is stressed and a combination of methods, western and eastern, works together for the best possible results. Health Science is always in a state of flux as bright minds join efforts worldwide to treat the human race. It is an exciting field with the human mind and body at its heart, one that makes a contribution to the quality of life for all people throughout the nations in an ever-changing world.