4: modern medicine

• what was the development of plastic surgery motivated by?

  WW1: a doctor called Harold Gillies set up a unit to transplant skin for soldiers with facial wounds.
• why had blood transfusions before 1900s often failed?

  because scientists didn't know that different people had different blood types. Infections could be passed on through transfusions.
• who discovered different blood types?

  Karl Landsteiner in 1900, he catagorised these groups into type A, type B, type AB, and type O. Blood transfusions had to be matched to a patient's blood type to work.
• how was blood stored for long periods of time without it clotting?

  Albert Hustin using sodium citrate.
• what advances in medicine were made during WW1?

  • blood transfusions
  • x-rays
• during WW1, how were x-rays used?

  used on the battlefield. Marie Curie developed mobile x-ray machines which were transportable. This allowed surgeons to identify where shrapnel or bullets were in a wounded soldier on the front line.
• when did Fleming make his discovery and when did he publish it?

  in 1928, he accidentally left out some Staphylococcus bacteria in his laboratory. Mould grew on one of the plates. The germs beside the mould stopped growing. This mould was a fungus called penicillin, it was a natural antibiotic. He published his research in 1929.
• what was the significance of Florey and Chain in the production of penicillin?

  Florey and Chain read Fleming's arcticle. They experimented on mice at the University of Oxford and then tested penicillin on humans. It worked, but doctors didn't produce much penicillin.
• why would the British government not fund the penicillin project in 1939?

  they were too focused on the war and chemical companies were producing explosives.
• when was penicillin first mass produced?

  In WW2, lots of soldiers got infected wounds. The USA government funded the team and then Britain in 1943 began to mass produce penicillin. Fleming, Florey, and Chain won a Nobel prize in 1945 for their discovery of penicillin.
• what was the role of chance and the government in the discovery of penicillin?

  fleming only discovered peniciliin because he accidentally left out some bacteria samples. Penicillin could only really be mass produced because of government funding.
• what % of injured British/USA soldiers would've died if they didn't have penicillin?

  15%
• when was the first open heart surgery and who performed it?

  in 1950 by William Bigelow and in 1958, a pacemaker was fitted in the heart.
• what was keyhole surgery?

  surgeons could perform an operation through small incisions. Keyhole surgery needed improvements in video so that tiny cameras could be put into the bodyto do surgery. Using miniature instruments and fibre-optic cameras, surgeons can perform operations which reconnected nerves and blood vessels together.
• who was radiation therapy advanced by?

  Marie Curie and Henri Becquerel in the 20th century, meaning the surgeon uses high-energy radiation on a patient with cancer. This helps a surgeon kills cancer cells and reduces the size of tumours.
• when was laser surgery first used?

  laser surgery was first used in 1987 in eye surgery. Alongside eye surgery, lasers can also help treat skin conditions, remove ulcers, control bleeding, and help remove blockages in arteries.
• when was MRI scanning developed?

  in 1987, this gave doctors a scan of the human body using magnets.
• what causes antibiotic resistance?

  if antibiotics were used too much and not all bacteria dies when antibiotics are taken, then bacteria can evolve and become resistant.
• why is antibiotic resistance bad?

  if antibiotics stop killing bacteria then surgery and infections would be more similiar to the middle ages. If the bacteria can't be killed this would make surgery less common because more people would die from infections.
• what was the first resistant bacteria?

  methicillin-resistant Staphyloccocus aureus (MRSA) appeared in 1961. MRSA infections have been reduced after the NHS encouraged medical staff to wash their hands continuously throughout the day. This is consistent with Pasteur's Germ Theory and aseptic surgical methods.
• what are alternative treatments on the NHS?

  alternative treatments today generally use natural herbs/plants or theories about the body to relieve pain and illness. Some of these treatments are more accepted and are available on the NHS. For example, acupuncture and homeopathy.
• when was the first organ transplant in Britain?

  1960
• when was the first heart surgery?

  in 1967, a South African surgeon, Christian Barnard successfully performed a heart transplant for the first time (but the patient only lived for 2.5 weeks after). The first heart transplant in Britain was in 1968.
• who developed immunosuppressants?

  Roy Calne in 1970
• when was the first full face transplant?

  2008
• what influenced the government to change their policy from "laissez faire" to the creation of a welfare state?


  the reports of Charles Booth and Seebohm Rowntree
• what % of London's population did Charles Booth believe to be living in poverty?

  30%
• what did Charles Booth's research show?

  he showed that poverty was linked to the nation's high death rate. He highlighted that there was a poverty life-cycle, meaning people's economic status could flucuate during their lifetime.
• what was Rowntree's "poverty line"?

  this meant the minimum amount of money a person needed to earn to stay out of poverty. He estimated that 20000 people, or 28% of the city's population, at some point in their life, were below the poverty line.
• why were politicians anxious to improve public health?

  they feared it was causing a decline in Britain's industrial power. For example, Germany had greater industrial strength and had passed social reforms to help workers.
• what were the 2 Liberal Party reforms?

  • 1906: they provided free school meals for poor children
  • 1907: a medical service for school children was established. This gave children free inspections and later free treatment.
• what were the Liberal Party reforms 1908-1911?

  • 1908: Children and Young Person's Act: children were protected in the eyes of the law against parental neglect and abuse.
  • 1908: Old Age Pensions were introduced for the elderly, supported by taxes.
  • 1909: the first job centres were created.
  • 1911: National Insurance Act: unemployment benefits, free medical treatment and sick pay were introduced.
• how did the Boer War highlight bad public health?

  the Boer war was fought between Britain and the Boers (Dutch settlers) in South Africa. In 1899, when it started, over a third of volunteers to join the army were unfit. Lots of people had illnesses that were linked to poverty and poor living conditions.
• what became compulsory in 1918?


  for local councils to provide health visits and support for pregnant women.
• when was a Ministry for Health set up + what did it do?

  1919: this looked after sanitation, healthcare, and the training of doctors and nurses.
• how many houses were built by the Labour government between 1945 and 1952?


  about 1 million.
• when was the New Towns Act + what did it do?

  1946: created whole new towns (like Milton Keynes and Telford) close to large cities.
• what did David Lloyd George want?

  to have "homes fit for heroes".
• what were the 5 giants?

  • disease
  • want
  • ignorance
  • idleness
  • squalor
• what did the Beveridge report highlight?

  that people's quality of life needed to improve and suggested that the government should be responsible for this. The report suggested that welfare should be available to everyone in need. It should be paid for by taxpayers, non-means tested, (available to everyone), and compulsory for everyone.