I have a headache: 2000 BC: Here, eat this root. 1000 AD: That root is heathen. Here, say this prayer. 1850 AD: That prayer is superstition. Here, drink this potion. 1940 AD: That potion is snake oil. Here, swallow this pill. 1985 AD: That pill is ineffective. Here, take this antibiotic. 2015 AD: That antibiotic is artificial. Here, eat this root. (Adapted from post originally published here). … [Read more...] about A short history of medicine
War’s waste – physiotherapy and the disabled war veteran
Physiotherapy and rehabilitation have always been inextricably linked. Although they represent discrete fields, their histories have often been closely intertwined. Physical rehabilitation as an organised discipline has its origins in World War I. Beth Linker, in her excellent book War's waste: Rehabilitation in World War I America, describes how it became necessary to change American attitudes to the retired Civil War veteran who had been considered heroes and, as such, exempted from work. But as the cost of meeting their social welfare costs grew, the government realised it needed a solution, and found its answer in the emerging rehabilitation sciences. The idea of the noble war … [Read more...] about War’s waste – physiotherapy and the disabled war veteran
Is behaviourism the future for physiotherapy?
Yesterday, I took part in one of the regular and always enjoyable Physiotalk Tweet Chats (#physiotalk). This one was on the role of physiotherapy in exercise prescription. As usual, the discussion ranged widely over all sorts of topics: whether physiotherapists were experts in exercise prescription and what needs to be taught in the UG curriculum not being the least of them. One thing that came through strongly was a desire to manage the client/patient's behaviour. Words like adherence, compliance and motivation kept coming up and people seemed to recognise that all the skill in the world wouldn't matter to the therapist if the patient didn't engage. As someone who's read their fair … [Read more...] about Is behaviourism the future for physiotherapy?