Combat Medicine Ancient Times to the present - Research Paper Example

In most parts of the world, armies were mobilized when the need to engage in warfare arose. This means militaries have been mainly unprofessional and so has the medical services related to the military over the past years. This paper examines the history of combat medicine and medical and health intervention in military settings. The paper will examine the earliest methods and approaches used to deal with military health issues and how this was evolved over the centuries. In order to undertake this study, the core aim of the research will be to examine the origins, history and development of combat medicine from ancient times to the present.

In order to conduct the study, the following objectives will be explored: In prehistoric times, disagreements between people were resolved by individual battles and hand-to-hand combats. However, as societies evolved and more people lived together in larger communities, conflicts between communities became more complicated and better weapons were invented to inflict more fatal injuries to people1. The seriousness of the wounds inflicted by modern weapons led the the need for more effective and efficient ways of dealing with the wounds inflicted in warfare.

This led to the consolidation of military and combat medicine from inception to about 2,000 BCE. Most of the earliest treatment systems for combat victims were mainly done through metaphysical methods. People used what will be known today as faith-healing to deal with their wounds and other war-oriented medical complications because that was what was in vogue and accepted in different nations and communities around the world. The metaphysical approach to dealing with war wounds and war medications involved the use of alchemy, astrology and the calling up of deities and angels to help to deal with the wounds and other challenges of warfare2.

However, the data and