Suffering-based medicine: practicing scientific medicine with a humanistic approach

Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy - Suffering, defined as a state of undergoing pain, distress or hardship, is a multidimensional concept; it can entail physical, psychological and spiritual...     

Chemistry--a scientific model for family medicine?

The academic basis of family medicine is currently undergoing reexamination. Some would have the specialty leave the academic arena and pursue a biopsychosocial mode of practice in the community. Others would have family medicine aggressively pursue academic research, apparently by abandoning the biopsychosocial approach to medical care. Chemistry as an academic discipline and as applied in community practice has solved many of the problems facing family medicine today. This paper suggests that one may learn much from chemistry. Four basic principles of applied science are presented from the point of view of a chemist: (1) science has an important but strictly limited contribution to make to medical practice; the humanistic goals of family medicine are philosophical decisions, and science is used to attain these goals; (2) observations are the basic reality of science; theory, to be useful, must explain and predict observations; (3) there is a basic unity in science; and (4) there is no hierarchy in scientific understanding. A model based on these four principles is presented that defines family medicine as the central, coordinating discipline in modern academic and community medical practice.     

科学看待精准医学的研究与进展

精准医学是一种将个体基因、环境与生活习惯差异考虑在内的疾病预防与治疗的新策略,旨在对疾病进行精确分类及诊断,为患者提供个性化、更具针对性的预防和治疗措施。大规模人群队列研究是精准医学研究的重要基础,能够为精准医学实践提供循证医学的最佳证据。对精准医学的批评与质疑主要集中在受益人群少、对健康社会决定因素的忽视以及可能导致有限医疗资源的浪费。尽管这样,精准医学仍然是一个“希望无限的领域”,并有望成为未来医疗保健的实践模式。     

预防医学科研核心竞争力探讨

根据国内外核心竞争力的最新研究情况,以及我国科研事业单位与企业的不同特点,探讨了科研核心竞争力的概念与内涵,并分析了科研核心竞争力的构成及其对科研工作的重要作用。在此基础上,探讨了如何培育和提升疾病预防控制机构的科研核心竞争力。     

The threat to scientific integrity in environmental and occupational medicine

Over the last century, environmental and occupational medicine has played a significant role in the protection and improvement of public health. However, scientific integrity in this field has been increasingly threatened by pressure from some industries and governments. For example, it has been reported that the tobacco industry manipulated eminent scientists to legitimise their industrial positions, irresponsibly distorted risk and deliberately subverted scientific processes, and influenced many organisations in receipt of tobacco funding. Many environmental whistleblowers were sued and encountered numerous personal attacks. In some countries, scientific findings have been suppressed and distorted, and scientific advisory committees manipulated for political purposes by government agencies. How to respond to these threats is an important challenge for environmental and occupational medicine professionals and their societies. The authors recommend that professional organisations adopt a code of ethics that requires openness from public health professionals; that they not undertake research or use data where they do not have freedom to publish their results if these data have public health implications; that they disclose all possible conflicts; that the veracity of their research results should not be compromised; and that their research independence be protected through professional and legal support. The authors furthermore recommend that research funding for public health not be directly from the industry to the researcher. An independent, intermediate funding scheme should be established to ensure that there is no pressure to analyse data and publish results in bad faith. Such a funding system should also provide equal competition for funds and selection of the best proposals according to standard scientific criteria.     

科研管理视角的人体疾病与医学

文章试图以“以人为本”的科学观为指导，结合自身从事医学科研管理工作实践，从人体疾病与医学最基本的概念出发，力求在理论与实践结合上谈几点体验，以期抛砖引玉，对新一代医学科研管理者，在创立有中国特色的医学科研管理新学科进程中，在本学科已走过的奠基一发扬一潜进的基础上复兴，乘国家“十一五”科学发展规划的东风，为医学科研管理的体制、机制创新做出新的业绩。     

The limits of scientific medicine: paradigm strain and social policy

In this essay, the historical roots of the dominant medical worldview will be drawn and its tenets will be outlined. The existing paradigm may be called the Western Biomedical Model, whose doctrines include body-mind dualism, physical reductionism, the mechanical analogy, specific etiology and the body as the appropriate focus of regimen and control. Some of the pressures straining the paradigm will be discussed, especially the force of human and population aging and the accompanying dominance of chronic illness as a focus of health care. The tentative outlines of an emergent model will be described in the context of the current health policy debate. The mind, biography, surrounding environment, and culture are a few considerations that become very significant in a non-Cartesian world.