Medical Miracles On The Horizon :: essays research papers

Medical Miracles on the Horizon The world and its inhabitants will face a multitude of problems in the 21st Century, including drug addiction, deadly disease, violent crime, warfare and hostility, hunger, and homelessness to name a few. All of these critical issues have been present to some extent in the 20th Century and, left unsolved, will continue to plague society and mankind as we enter the new millennium. As we rapidly approach the next era, new issues of equal or even greater importance for mankind will almost certainly arise. I personally envision health issues, concerns related directly to medicine, as the central, most critical and comprehensive problem facing leaders of the 21st Century.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In my opinion, physicians and others associated with the medical profession will participate in one of the most vital and urgent roles entering into the new era. This is one of the reasons that I intend to pursue a career in the medical field after I graduate from The University of Tennessee. Of all occupations in the next millennium, medicine will be perhaps the most important and influential in combating the problems of mankind and in solving them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   People in the field of medicine will continue, as they have in this century, to address and participate in almost all concerns. For example, methadone is currently being used as a therapeutic intervention for some drug addictions. In addition, various medications are now being given in the treatment of criminals, like anti-psychotic drugs to curb aggressive or violent behavior in schizophrenics. A new and improved group of antidepressants is also being used to treat and reduce the growing rate of suicide in all ages of our society. Because a very high percentage of homeless people suffer from psychological problems and/or drug addictions, doctors may also eventually play a larger role in prescribing medication for these individuals. Concerning warfare that may be present into the 21st Century, the medical community will be required to detect and treat a variety of injuries and illnesses, just as they have had to decipher and work on patients who fell victim to the Gulf War Syndrome. Any future wars may have even more insidious side-effects due to the use of lethal chemicals. Cures have been found for many illnesses, such as polio, smallpox, and various childhood diseases in the present century, but other health concerns are manifesting rapidly. One of the most important task doctors and research scientists may face is to fight new strains of deadly diseases in the coming years. Outbreaks of eboli and the emergence of diseases that are drug-resistant to antibiotics threaten the survival of mankind.