Look at these general issues about medicine and the medical profession. Talk about them in small groups.

HEALTH

1 Look at the statements. Which do you agree with? Which are the most important? Give your reasons.

A good doctor...

1 knows the names of all his/her patients.

2 listens sympathetically to people who are not really ill.

3 accepts alternative treatments such as hypnosis, acupuncture and aromatherapy.

4 tells people how to live a healthy life.

5 uses everyday language rather than medical terms in discussions with patients.

6 acts on instinct rather than using logical reasoning.

7 makes home visits in the evenings and/or at weekends.

8 recognises emergency cases immediately.

9 usually prescribes medication, for example, anti-depressant tablets.

10 treats the person rather than the disease.

A) Look at the words in the box and find the following.

1six people who work in medicine

2 six treatments / types of drug

3 six medical conditions

Alzheimer's anaesthetist antibiotic arthritis cancer chest infection diabetes surgeon radiologist transplant heart disease injection midwife morphine painkiller pharmacist physiotherapy psychiatrist

B)Complete the sentences with some of the words in the box.

1 A doctor writes a prescription, but you need to take it to a _____to get the medicine.

2 After my operation, I had_____twice a week for three months until I could walk again.

3 They found an organ donor in time, so it looks like the_____will go ahead as planned.

4 People who suffer from_____need to take insulin or regulate their diets.

5 People with eating disorders, like anorexia and bulimia, are usually treated by a_____.

6 Some drugs are best given to patients by_____.

7 Often caused by poor diet,_____is the biggest killer in the western world.

X-rays

X-rays are images which are used to diagnose disease. They were discovered by Wilhelm Rontgen, a German scientist working in Munich, in 1895. He was working on a cathode ray tube* developed by one of his colleagues, when he noticed that it was projecting a green light on the wall. Strangely, the light was passing through some materials, including paper, wood and books. As he experimented by placing other materials in the way, he noticed that the outline of the bones in his hand was projected onto the wall. In the following weeks he continued to investigate the new rays, which he temporarily called X-rays. Two months later, he. published his paper 'On a new kind of X-rays', and in 1901 he was awarded the first Nobel Prize in Physics. Although the new rays would eventually be known as Rontgen rays, he always preferred the term X-rays. Today, Rontgen is considered the father of Diagnostic Radiology, a medical speciality using images to diagnose disease. Nowadays, radiologists can examine all areas of the body for different types of disease.

*A cathode ray tube is a piece of equipment which can produce an image on a screen, as in a television.

Look at these general issues about medicine and the medical profession. Talk about them in small groups.

1 Should people have to pay for health care?

2 Do you think nurses and midwives are paid enough in your country? Why/Why not?

3 Soon medical advances will allow people to live to a very old age. Is this desirable? Why /Why not?

4 Should new drugs be tested on both animals and humans before being prescribed by doctors?

Penicillin

This was the first effective antibiotic. It was discovered by Alexander Fleming, who was a brilliant medical researcher at St Mary's Hospital, London. He was also careless, and his laboratory was often untidy. In 1928, after returning from holiday, he noticed a glass dish that had some mould growing on it His analysis of this and its effect on the bacteria in the dish led to the discovery of penicillin. This paved the way for the treatment of infectious disease. Fleming published his findings in 1929, but little attention was paid to them. He continued his research, but found it was difficult to grow penicillin mould and even more difficult to refine it Fleming shared the 1945 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Ernst Chain, who worked out how to isolate and concentrate penicillin/Howard Florey also shared the prize for his work on mass producing penicillin. Fleming's accidental discovery marks the start of modern antibiotics. It is estimated that penicillin has saved nearly 200 million lives.

Facts about malaria

1. Malaria kills more people than any infection apart from HIV/Aids

2. Malaria is spread by the single-celled parasite Plasmodium and it is endemic in parts of Asia, Africa and Central and South America.

3. 90% of malaria deaths occur among young children in sub-Saharan Africa

4. Malaria kills up to 2.7 million people a year.

5. Symptoms of malaria include neck stiffness, fits, abnormal breathing and fever

6. Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan died of malaria. John F. Kennedy and Mahatma Gandhi contracted malaria but recovered.

7. There is currently no effective vaccine against malaria

World Swim against Malaria

The Carleton Place Water Dragons (Ontario, Canada) will be doing their swim between December 5 and 9. On Friday December 9, from 6 to 7 p.m., the club will be asking parents, friends and siblings to swim and help the global initiative reach their target of one million swimmers and increase funds for the fight against malaria.

| Insect Can Resist Disease

A genetically-engineered mosquito could be the key to stopping humans catching malaria.

Scientists in the US have created a mosquito with a gene that prevents it being infected by the malaria parasite.

і In experiments, equal numbers of GM* and ordinary 'wild' mosquitoes were allowed to feed on malaria-infected mice. As they reproduced, more of the genetically-altered mosquitoes survived. After nine generations, 70% of the insects belonged to the malaria-resistant strain. However, when both sets of insects were fed non-infected blood they survived equally well. For resistant mosquitoes to be useful in the wild, they must survive better than non-resistant mosquitoes even when not exposed to malaria. Nevertheless, the researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, concluded: 'The results have important implications for implementation of malaria control by means of genetic modification of mosquitoes.'

*GM=genetically modified

Africa Malaria Day

The Roll Back Malaria partnership has decided that Africa Malaria Day mil be commemorated on 25 April every year. In Africa many countries will be organising events and activities in the run-up to 25 April and on Africa Malaria Day itself. In Europe, coalitions and alliances against malaria will be lobbying in parliaments. And the malaria community of the United States will be highlighting this day with its Malaria Awareness Day. Many governments are planning to increase their funding in the fight against malaria.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-16