The Transformation of Medicine in Appalachia - Essay Example

? ized to Heal: Gender, and the Transformation of Medicine in Appalachia - Review Sandra Lee Barney is the author of the book being reviewed in which she describes various disciplines and gives a historical insight in relation to the differences in the gender and social classes with reference to medical practices (Haberland). Barney’s examination in this book is based on the liberal period in the rural prospective and along which she presented her analysis on the evolution of medicine from the nineteenth century to the beginning of the twentieth century (Barney 136). The author further describes that medicine formulated on the basis of scientific research gained popularity among the extensively dispersed areas of Southern Appalachia through the efforts of young trained physicians. After presenting the background, the author shows how “professionalization of medicine” has affected the residents of Appalachia (Haberland). The author further provides an exploration of the historical perspective of advancements in the context of the Southern Mountains in which differences in gender and social classes are interrelated (Barney 12, 71). The rural areas of mountain countries which included “Kentucky”, “Virginia” and “West Virginia” were also explored by the author and she claims that these countries comprise physicians who were not well trained and only few of them had formal medical training (Haberland). The people of Appalachia, especially the rural population, were self-dependent in regard to different medical aspects, whereas the midwives preferred the medical diagnosis along with its treatment procedures. According to the “labour historians,” the coal-mine industries provided the best and foremost medical services; their physicians were claimed to be highly qualified and properly trained in many parts of Appalachia (Haberland). Barney’s study further became critical in relation to the analysis between traditional physicians in the region and properly trained and educated doctors. Her arguments stress the fact that medicine, which was based on scientific research, was not gaining fame in the region due to a higher poverty rate and the fact that the area itself was on such geographical location that it remained isolated from other developed regions. Moreover, the natives believed that properly trained and educated medical experts were more expensive as compared to the other untrained and local physicians (27). The issues between the traditional physicians and formally trained medical experts kept on intensifying until the beginning of the twentieth century, after which trained medical experts engaged themselves into alliances with other medical organizations (Barney 17). The author then elaborates how the trained medical experts organized themselves and pursued the traditional physicians in the region by chasing them and demanding their authority to carry out medical services (Haberland). The author’s main focus in the book rests on the “midwives,” “clubwomen,” “nurses” and “other medical works” (Haberland). The medical trainers, in the beginning, motivated females in particular to provide medical services in a professional manner. As the things progressed, women, who participated in providing the health care services under experts’ supervision, started developing awareness among other locals about the benefits of proper medical treatment under the supervision of formally trained medical staff (Haberland). Moreover, the middle class women health care workers, on behalf of the physicians to provide their medical services, developed awareness among the Appalachian people about the benefits and positive attributes of scientific medicines and to make them understand the differences between the treatment of traditional healers and trained doctors. The author basically feels that a person, who is unaware of the proper medical services because of lack of education, opts for an ordinary healer for medical treatment, which in fact should not be done and it is, therefore, necessary that awareness among such people is promoted so that they can avail the medical treatments in a proper manner (Barney 83). The author claims that with the passage of time female staff members, who included midwives and other health assistants, became stronger in providing excellent public health services and started working as independent associations. These developments made the Appalachian physicians anxious because they were surprised about the tremendous growth of women and they felt a threat to their traditional system of health care that prevailed in their region. But then some public health workers realized that working independently became a difficult task to manage because they lacked financial, infrastructural and technical support which is necessary for a medical center (Haberland). Barney also emphasizes that females were the ones who introduced medicines based on scientific research in those rural areas and promoted awareness among the people about the benefits of moving from the traditional healing methods to scientific based medical solutions (Barney 75). Barney’s study is of great importance because it can be applied to various other areas and one can also consider the study while considering the promotion of health care facilities in remote areas. On the basis of this review, it can be argued that this study will be quite helpful for people who are interested in studying and exploring the relationship and interdependency among social classes, gender roles, medicines, rural areas and deliverance of proper medication (Haberland). Authorized to Heal was written while considering different research works on health care and medicines, Appalachian people, rural area, medical care associations, and other related aspects of medicines and all this work was conducted by Barney. She presented all the changes regarding Appalachian medicine which started in 1880 and continued till 1930. It is because of her efforts that people came to know about the importance of class and gender roles concerning medical histories. However, Barney shared both prospects about the male physicians and female physicians; her research elaborated mainly about the transition from traditional to modern ways and other related aspects of it (Haberland). In this study of Barney, readers who look for family oriented or individual factors related to the adoption of non-traditional medicine will not get ample material from this book. Despite of the appreciable work done by the physicians and the fact that properly trained physicians made a difference through their science based treatment of patients, Barney makes little effort to commend the remarkable achievements of the modern science and its implications in the health care sector. Works Cited Barney, Sandra. Authorized to Heal: Gender, Class, and the Transformation of Medicine in Appalachia. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1880-1930. Print. Haberland, Michelle. "Authorized to Heal: Gender, Class, and the Transformation of Medicine in Appalachia." Humanities and Social Sciences January 2011. Web. 12 July 2012. . Read More