1950s
Before the 1950s, most people died in their homes, surrounded by loved ones. Medical science had not yet learned how to combat many diseases and illnesses that are easier to control today. Life-saving technology, such as respirators and feeding tubes, were not yet available. Before the 1950s, nature, not medical technology, was the controller of death.
During the 1950s, tools to keep hearts beating, bodies nourished, and lungs breathing became available. Medical advancement, from pharmacology to medical procedures, began to make it possible to extend the life of even the seriously ill. Life expectancy grew longer, but quality of life was often diminished. Many patients became confined to beds and dependent on machines for weeks, months, and sometimes years. With their own bodies unable to support them, technology stepped in to forestall death.
Once technologies supporting prolonged life began outnumbering natural deaths, the question of whether a patient should be able to quicken his or her own death by refusing these life supports arose. And in cases when a patient is unable to decide for himself or herself, should a family member or physician then step in to make the decision? The medical community began facing a dilemma of who controls death: the patient or the doctor?
Check out the history in the 1960s
During the 1950s, tools to keep hearts beating, bodies nourished, and lungs breathing became available. Medical advancement, from pharmacology to medical procedures, began to make it possible to extend the life of even the seriously ill. Life expectancy grew longer, but quality of life was often diminished. Many patients became confined to beds and dependent on machines for weeks, months, and sometimes years. With their own bodies unable to support them, technology stepped in to forestall death.
Once technologies supporting prolonged life began outnumbering natural deaths, the question of whether a patient should be able to quicken his or her own death by refusing these life supports arose. And in cases when a patient is unable to decide for himself or herself, should a family member or physician then step in to make the decision? The medical community began facing a dilemma of who controls death: the patient or the doctor?
Check out the history in the 1960s
Body
_ In
“Body,” the history and issues of Gender Identity Disorder are summarized.
Mind
_In “Mind,” the history and issues associated with the use of antidepressants are summarized.
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