{"id":66,"date":"2021-01-25T20:22:27","date_gmt":"2021-01-25T20:22:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-hvcc-healthpsychology\/?post_type=chapter&p=66"},"modified":"2021-01-25T20:24:37","modified_gmt":"2021-01-25T20:24:37","slug":"what-is-biomedicine","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-hvcc-healthpsychology\/chapter\/what-is-biomedicine\/","title":{"raw":"What is Biomedicine?","rendered":"What is Biomedicine?"},"content":{"raw":"Biomedicine<\/b>\u00a0(also referred to as\u00a0Western medicine<\/b>,\u00a0mainstream medicine<\/b>\u00a0or\u00a0conventional medicine<\/b>)[1]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0is a branch of\u00a0medical science<\/a>\u00a0that applies biological and physiological principles to\u00a0clinical practice<\/a>. Biomedicine stresses standardized, evidence-based treatment validated through biological research, with treatment administered via formally trained doctors, nurses, and other such licensed practitioners.\u00a0[2]<\/a><\/sup>\r\n\r\nBiomedicine also can relate to many other categories in\u00a0health<\/a>\u00a0and biological related fields. It has been the dominant system of medicine in the\u00a0Western world<\/a>\u00a0for more than a century.[3]<\/a><\/sup>[4]<\/a><\/sup>[5]<\/a><\/sup>[6]<\/a><\/sup>\r\n

Overview<\/span><\/h2>\r\nBiomedicine is the cornerstone of modern\u00a0health care<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0laboratory diagnostics<\/a>. It concerns a wide range of scientific and technological approaches: from\u00a0in vitro diagnostics<\/a>[7]<\/a><\/sup>[8]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0to\u00a0in vitro fertilisation<\/a>,[9]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0from the molecular mechanisms of\u00a0cystic fibrosis<\/a>\u00a0to the population dynamics of the\u00a0HIV<\/a>\u00a0virus<\/a>, from the understanding of molecular interactions to the study of\u00a0carcinogenesis<\/a>,[10]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0from a\u00a0single-nucleotide polymorphism<\/a>\u00a0(SNP) to\u00a0gene therapy<\/a>.\r\n\r\nBiomedicine is based on\u00a0molecular biology<\/a>\u00a0and combines all issues of developing\u00a0molecular medicine<\/a>[11]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0into large-scale structural and functional relationships of the\u00a0 human\u00a0genome<\/a>,\u00a0transcriptome<\/a>,\u00a0proteome<\/a>,\u00a0physiome<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0metabolome<\/a>\u00a0with the particular point of view of devising new technologies for prediction, diagnosis and therapy\u00a0[12]<\/a><\/sup>\r\n\r\nBiomedicine involves the study of (patho<\/a>-)\u00a0physiological<\/a>\u00a0processes with methods from\u00a0biology<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0physiology<\/a>. Approaches range from understanding\u00a0molecular interactions<\/a>\u00a0to the study of the consequences at the\u00a0in vivo<\/a>\u00a0level. These processes are studied with the particular point of view of devising new strategies for\u00a0diagnosis<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0therapy<\/a>.[13]<\/a><\/sup>[14]<\/a><\/sup>\r\n\r\nDepending on the severity of the disease, biomedicine pinpoints a problem within a patient and fixes the problem through medical intervention. Medicine focuses on curing diseases rather than improving one's health.[15]<\/a><\/sup>\r\n\r\nIn social sciences biomedicine is described somewhat differently. Through an anthropological lens biomedicine extends beyond the realm of biology and scientific facts; it is a\u00a0socio-cultural<\/a>\u00a0system which collectively represents reality. While biomedicine is traditionally thought to have no bias due to the evidence-based practices, Gaines & Davis-Floyd (2004) highlight that biomedicine itself has a cultural basis and this is because biomedicine reflects the norms and values of its creators.[16]<\/a><\/sup>\r\n\r\nThe\u00a0medical model of disability<\/b>, or medical model, arose from the biomedical perception of\u00a0disability<\/a>. This model links a disability diagnosis to an individual's physical body. The model supposes that this disability may reduce the individual's\u00a0quality of life<\/a>\u00a0and the aim is, with medical intervention, this disability will be diminished or corrected.[1]<\/a><\/sup>\r\n\r\nThe medical model focuses on curing or managing illness or disability. By extension, the medical model supposes a \"compassionate\" or\u00a0just<\/a>\u00a0society invests resources in health care and related services in an attempt to cure or manage disabilities\u00a0medically<\/i>. This is in an aim to expand functionality and\/or improve functioning, and to allow disabled persons a more \"normal\" life. The\u00a0medical<\/a>\u00a0profession's responsibility and potential in this area is seen as central.\r\n

History<\/span><\/h2>\r\nBefore the introduction of the\u00a0biomedical model<\/a>, patients relaying their narratives to the doctors was paramount. Through these narratives and developing an intimate relationship with the patients, the doctors would develop treatment plans in a time when diagnostic and treatment options were limited.[2]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0This could particularly be illustrated with aristocratic doctors treating the elite during the 17th and 18th century.[3]<\/a><\/sup>\r\n\r\nIn 1980, the\u00a0World Health Organization<\/a>\u00a0(WHO) introduced a framework for working with disability, publishing the \"International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities and Handicaps.\" The framework proposed to approach disability by using the terms Impairment, Handicap and Disability.[4]<\/a><\/sup>\r\n