Mammuth in Barcelona

Beside of one mammuth, the world looks little. That's what the guys of the Minor course thinked visiting the park. This reproduction in original size is part of a bigger idea from the begining of XX century about put in the parc reproductions of the extinct fauna of Catalonia

One of the most important places of science in Barcelona is El Parc de la Ciutadella. It holds the Zoology museum, the Green House (Hivernacle), the Shade House (Umbracle), the Zoo, one artificial lake with little boats, the reproduction of one Mammuth and this fountain where the students are. It was an ideal location to discuss about the role of the social and natural sciences in the life of the medicine doctor and to imagine the place of the Universal Exhibition of 1888.

MINOR COURSE PROGRAM

1. The Global Medicine Course
a. Introduction of teacher and students.
b. Presentation of the course, and its objectives
c. Round of inquiries about what they expect from the course
2. Health, Disease and Science
a. What’s health? What’s disease? What’s science? (Brainstorm)
b. History of the concepts and discussion panel to relate with Global Medicine.
3. Natural Disasters: Natural phenomena, Politics
a. Meteorology and geology (Class)
b. Case Studies in Earthquakes, Tornados, Tsunamis, etc. (Presentation of examples, images and debate about the role of sanitary personal in emergencies)
4. Pandemics, Vaccinations, the work in the Lab
a. The small world of Virus and Bacteria.
b. Rage and Cholera.
c. Influenza.
5. Human Anatomy and Physiology (Preparation of the Lab)
a. Neurology and the Senses.
b. Circulation System.
c. Excretion system.
6. Anatomy Lab: Meeting the Organs
a. Laboratory.
b. Presentation of results.
7. Medicine & Sport
(GUEST SPEAKER: Yoko TOCHIGI, PhD Student in the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, writing her Thesis about The divulgation of Medic and Hygienic Ideas in Sport Press)
8. FAO (Food &Agriculture Organization), the alimentary health and WHO (World Health Organization) and his role in the world’s welfare.
a. Nutrition and agriculture.
b. WHO, United Nations and UNICEF.
9. Medicine in undeveloped countries: Tuberculosis, Malaria, Sexual transmitted diseases
a. Cases in America, Asia, Africa
b. Treatments and politics
c. Red Cross, Médecins sans Frontières and other NGO’s
d. Preparation of Session 11, giving subjects for essays)
10. Medicine and War.
(GUEST SPEAKER: Pablo VIDAL, Director of one Documentary about the conflict in Sahara
11. Bio-Ethic.
a. What is Ethic? Is necessary in Science or Medicine? (Essay exercise on: Euthanasia, organ donation, clonation, DNA manipulation, Science in the Death camps of Nazis, Animal experimentation)
b. Debate.
12. Final Session (Round table)
a. Suggestions.
b. Conclusions.

MAJOR COURSE PROGRAM

1. The Global Medicine Course
1.1. Introduction of teacher and students.
1.2. Presentation of the course, and its objectives
1.3. Round of inquiries about what they expect from the course
1.4. Short discussion about methodology and elaboration of final works
2. Health & Disease
2.1. What is Health, What is disease (Brainstorming)
2.2. History of the concepts (Class)
2.3. Relationships with global medicine (discussion panel).
3. Medicine as Natural, Human and Social Science
3.1. Different kind of sciences and different ways for search the knowledge (Class)
3.2. Is Medicine Natural or Social? How must be? (Debate)
3.3. Assignation of themes for the final works
4. Field trip 1: Visit to the Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau
4.1. Public Health in early XX century
4.2. Modernism for the people.
5. Natural Disasters: Natural phenomena, Politics, Actions, Plans (Seminar)
5.1. Meteorology and Geology
5.2. Study of recent cases of natural disaster: Tsunami of Asia, Katrina, Haiti’s Earthquake and governmental reactions.
5.3. Global community, charity and aid programs.
6. The Instrument, the tool and the object: Material culture of the discipline
6.1. What is an Instrument? What is a tool? What is an object? (brainstorming)
6.2. Presentation of different kind of apparatus from the collection of Museum of History of Medicine (PowerPoint presentation)
6.3. Importance of artefacts in science (discussion)
7. Visit to Empuries & Figueres: Hippocratic theories – Galenism
7.1. Hippocratic Oath. (Exercise: A little bit of theatre)
7.2. Galeno, the Doctor of Gladiators.
8. Field trip 2: Visit to Anatomical Theatre of Barcelona
8.1. Medicine in the Enlightenment.
8.2. Literary meetings of the Academy.
9. Human Anatomy and Physiology (Expositions in groups of 2-3 students)
9.1. Neurology, the brain and the senses.
9.2. Circulatory system.
9.3. Excretion system.
10. Anatomy Lab: Meeting the Organs
10.1. Presentation of the Laboratory.
10.2. Practice with real organs, identification of functional structures.
10.3. Presentation of results.
10.4. Guide for the elaboration of one laboratory report.
11. The Red Cross, Médecins sans Frontières and the NGO’s (Seminar)
11.1. History of Red Cross (Research homework)
11.2. Importance of the institution.
11.3. History and Mission of Medicos sin Fronteras (Research homework)
11.4. Presence of NGO’s in the world, elaboration of maps of health.
12. Medicine & Sport
12.1. (GUEST SPEAKER: Yoko TOCHIGI, PhD Student in the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, writing her Thesis about The divulgation of Medic and Hygienic Ideas in Sport Press)
13. Visit to Girona: Medieval practices
13.1. Islamic knowledge of Medicine, heritage of Greece and Rome.
13.2. The Jewish scientific tradition in the Iberian lands.
13.3. Medicine and Surgery in Girona.
14. Pandemics, Vaccinations, the work in the lab
14.1. The Rage.
14.2. The Cholera.
14.3. Developing treatments, and productions of vaccines and serums.
14.4. Eradication of risk factors.
14.5. Crosswords.
15. Field trip 3: Visit to Monestir de Pedralbes: Botanic Pharmacy
15.1. Take care of sick people, one Christian duty.
15.2. Botanic gardens for health.
16. FAO (Food &Agriculture Organization), the alimentary health and WHO (World Health Organization) and his role in the world’s welfare (Roundtable)
16.1. Nutrition and agriculture in the world, diseases related with alimentation.
16.2. The role of WHO in the prevention of disease around the world.
16.3. United Nations programs.
16.4. UNICEF.
17. OSEZNOS ERRANTES: Meeting the Global Medicine course.
17.1. Health and disease conclusions of the group.
17.2. Medicine as Natural, Human and Social Science.
17.3. Natural Disasters: Natural phenomena, Politics, Actions, Plans.
17.4. Pandemics, Vaccinations, the work in the lab.
17.5. Bio-Ethic.
18. Medicine on Wars: Biological and Chemical Weapons, Advances in Science due to the conflict.
18.1. (GUEST SPEAKER: Pablo VIDAL, Director of one Documentary about the conflict in Sahara
19. Bio-Ethic
19.1. What is Ethic? Is necessary in Science or Medicine? (Essay exercise on: Euthanasia, organs donation, clonation and DNA manipulation, Science in the Death camps of Nazis, Animal experimentation)
19.2. Debate.
19.3. Conclusion round.
20. Medicine in undeveloped countries: Tuberculosis, Malaria, Sexual transmitted diseases. Seminar and discussion about readings on following topics:
20.1. Asia and Tuberculosis.
20.2. Africa and the AIDS.
20.3. South America and Malaria.
21. Visit to Montserrat: Medieval Order and Christianity
21.1. The Social order of Medieval times.
21.2. The Doctor, the Lawman and the Priest.
22. Final Session (Round table)
22.1. Final conclusions for the course.
22.2. Presentation of Final Works.

ABOUT THE TEACHER

J. Joaquin Varela-Restrepo holds a Biology degree from the Universidad del Cauca, Colombia and a Master in History of Science from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain. He is specialised in Zoology and has worked in the Neotropical rainforest with several vertebrates groups. In addition to his scientific formation he is trained in Museology, Scientific Drawing, Documental Photography, Taxidermy and Radio Production. At present he works with the collections of the Museu d’Història de la Medicina de Catalunya in Barcelona as part of his academic projects about Medicine, Museology and Natural History, and he is currently preparing his PhD thesis on the History of Zoology in the XIX century.

PRESENTATION OF GLOBAL MEDICINE

Science is a social construction and there might not be any other science with more social implications as Medicine. The medicine doctor has been a respected member in the community/or in communities across time thanks to his knowledge of health and disease which gives him the power to heal.
In current times, one of the most relevant fields of scientific research is Medicine. Several places like universities, hospitals and research institutes work in the development of various tools, practices, techniques, therapies, etc. They are discovering new vaccines, studying risk factors related with diseases, such as geography, polluted waters, radiations, alimentation, genetic and even social factors which could improve factual knowledge in this area.
The production of medical knowledge is a business with big amounts of money flowing and this is the reason why the advances in the field of medicine do not reach the entire global community. Indeed, only a small part of the world has access to modern health programs. Thanks to the initiatives of private foundations and institutes and to the efforts of NGO’s such as the Red Cross, Médecins sans Frontières, or the World Health Organization, developing countries are improving their health conditions and receiving the knowledge and the help to improve their life conditions.This course talks about Medicine and its relationship with modern life in a global context. We will study the sciences of the body, like human anatomy and physiology; discuss relevant topics like health and disease, scientific instruments natural disasters, pandemics or bio-ethic. A social and historical perspective will help us in the understanding of the evolution of concepts and the different cultural approaches to the knowledge in the health practices and to build an idea of the role of medical sciences in a global context.