6.1.5

Attitudes in Society

Test yourself

Attitudes in Society

Attitudes to different aspects of medicine and public health changed over the period.

Illustrative background for Supernatural beliefsIllustrative background for Supernatural beliefs ?? "content

Supernatural beliefs

  • In medieval times, beliefs that illnesses could have supernatural causes stemmed from Ancient Greek, Roman and Egyptian ideas.
  • Astrology, witches and God were all supposed supernatural causes of illness. This was common during the Black Death (1348).
  • Supernatural beliefs were common until humanist thinkers such as Erasmus started to argue against them.
  • Consequences: As late as the 1800s, supernatural beliefs can be blamed for slowing progress within medicine.
Illustrative background for Medical treatmentIllustrative background for Medical treatment ?? "content

Medical treatment

  • Galen's theory of opposites shaped society's attitude to medical treatment right into the 1800s.
  • This was an example of it taking a long time for attitudes to change.
  • Conclusion: Outdated medical theories could take hundreds of years to be corrected in society.
Illustrative background for Social reformersIllustrative background for Social reformers ?? "content

Social reformers

  • Seebohm Rowntree was a factory owner in York. He investigated the living conditions in York in 1901.
  • Rowntree invented the term ‘poverty line’. This meant the minimum amount of money a person needed to earn to stay out of poverty.
  • Conclusion: As a factory owner (not a member of the government) Rowntree was able to influence medicine from outside the profession.
Illustrative background for The NHSIllustrative background for The NHS ?? "content

The NHS

  • The National Health Service (NHS) was set up by Aneurin Bevan in 1948. People wanted their free health care from the war to continue.
  • Not everyone in society supported the NHS. Lots of Conservatives and doctors disliked the NHS, but it was too popular to abolish (get rid of).
  • Conclusion: Although the NHS is very popular today, it faced significant opposition when it was founded.

Jump to other topics

1Medicine in Medieval England

1.1Ideas about the Cause of Disease & Illness

1.1.1Supernatural & Religious Explanations

1.1.2Hippocrates

1.1.3Galen

1.1.4End of Topic Test - Ideas About Disease

1.1.5Exam-Style Questions - Hippocrates' Contribution

1.2Approaches to Prevention & Treatment

1.2.1Medieval 'Doctors'

1.2.2Medieval Surgery

1.3Case Study

1.3.1The Black Death

1.3.2End of Topic Test - Medieval treatment

1.3.3Grade 9 - Medieval Medicine

2The Medical Renaissance in England

2.1Ideas about the Cause of Disease & Illness

2.1.1Scientific Approach & Knowledge

2.2Approaches to Prevention & Treatment

2.2.1Changing Methods of Treatment

2.2.2Institutions & Technology

2.2.3Changes for Physicians, Surgeons & Hospitals

2.2.4Dissection & Vesalius

2.3Case Studies

2.3.1William Harvey & the Great Plague

2.3.2End of Topic Test - Medical Renaissance in England

2.3.3Grade 9 - The Medical Renaissance

3Medicine in 18th & 19th Century Britain

3.1Ideas about the Cause of Disease & Illness

3.1.1Germ Theory

3.1.2Koch & Pasteur's Vaccination

3.1.3Exam-Style Questions - Pasteur & Koch

3.2Approaches to Prevention & Treatment

3.2.1Improving Public Health

3.2.2Anaesthetics & Antiseptics

3.2.3Physicians, Surgeons & Nurses

3.2.4Exam-Style Questions - Nightingale's Contribution

3.3Case Studies

3.3.1Vaccination & Edward Jenner

3.3.2Fighting Cholera in London, 1854

3.3.3End of Topic Test - 18th & 19th Century Medicine

3.3.4Grade 9 - 18th & 19th Century Medicine

4Medicine in Modern Britain

4.1Modern Understanding of Disease

4.1.1Viruses & Bacteria

4.1.2New Diseases & Treatments in 20th C

4.1.3Diagnosing Disease

4.2Approaches to Prevention & Treatment

4.2.1Antibiotics

4.2.2New Treatments in the 20th Century

4.2.3New Approaches to Surgery & Prevention

4.2.4Social Changes in the Early 20th Century

4.2.5The NHS

4.2.6The NHS 2

4.3Case Studies

4.3.1Penicillin & Lung Cancer

4.3.2End of Topic Test - Modern Britain

4.3.3Grade 9 - Medicine in Modern Britain

5Treatment in WW1

5.1Medicine in WW1

5.1.1Trench Warfare

5.1.2The Impact of WW1

5.1.3Disease in the Trenches

5.1.4End of Topic Test- Treatment in WW1

5.1.5Grade 9 - Treatment in WW1

5.1.6Exam-Style Questions - Role of War on Medicine

6Themes in Medicine

6.1Themes in Medicine over Time

6.1.1The Role of Individuals

6.1.2Institutions - Government

6.1.3Institutions - The Church

6.1.4Science & Technology

6.1.5Attitudes in Society

6.1.6End of Topic Test -Themes in Medicine

6.1.7Grade 9 - Themes in Medicine

6.1.8Exam-Style Questions - Attitudes to Illness

7Some Extra Context (Not Compulsory for Exam)

7.1Medieval Medicine

7.1.1Islamic Advances in Medieval Medicine

7.1.2End of Topic Test - Extra Content

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Science & Technology

End of Topic Test -Themes in Medicine