medicine in britain

• The NHS


  launched in 1948, provided medical care for all by improving access, took over existing hospitals and medical services
• Magic Bullets 


  chemical cures that attack bacteria in the body that is causing disease

  Paul Erlich tested over 600 compounds but did not find a cure for syphilis

  1909: Japense scientest, Hata, found a cure for syphilis, named it Salvarson 606

  1932: Prontosil discovered which killed bacterial infections/blood poisoning

  during WW2: M&B 693 was developed which cured pneumonia
• Medical Treatments 


  advanced x-rays = radiotherapy that targeted and shrank tumours

  
  

  smaller, cheaper machines = dialysis for kidney transplants and heart bypasses

  
  

  robotics = prosthetic limbs, especially for soldiers who were injured in wars
• Surgical Treatments 


  microsurgery = 1956: first successful kidney transplant which led to other organs being transplanted

  keyhole surgery = uses tiny cameras and narrow surgical instruments

  robotic = surgeons use computers to control instruments that are inside the body, this is used for more precise surgeries like on the brain
• Compulsory Vaccinations 


  diptheria = 1942: first national vaccination campaign

  = 3000 children died from it each year

  = infection rates plumetted after the campaign

  = in 1950s is was a disease of the past

  
  

  polio = 1956: first national vaccination campaign

  = 8000 cases each year

  = not a case of polio in britain since 1984

  
  

  rubella

  mumps

  HPV
• Government Passing Laws


  clean air acts of 1956 and 1968 (after the Smog in London)

  limited car emissions

  2007: became illegal to smoke in enclosed workplaces
• Communicating Heath Risks 


  advertising campaigns launched = warned about the dangers of smoking, binge drinking, recreational drug use and unprotected sex

  initiatives created such as Stoptober

  Change4Life campaign = young people encouraged to eat healthy and do more exercise
• Lung Cancer


  second most common cancer in the UK

  mainly affects people over the age of 40

  mostly caused by external factors

  85% of cases are people who smoke
• Government Action 


  2005 - cigarette advertising banned

  2007 - banned smoking in workplaces

  2007 - legal age to buy tobacco raised from 16 to 18

  2012 - cigarette products removed from displays in shops

  2015 - no smoking in a car with a child who is under the age of 18
• x-rays 


  wilhelm rontgen in 1895

  penetrate flesh to see inside the body

  1896, radiology departments were created in hospitals

  could see objects like needles and bones
• blood transfusions


  james blundell in 1818

  in 1901, landsteiner discovered blood groups which lessened the risk of blood rejection

  danger of blood clots and infection from unsterilised equipment