Frontiers of Medicine

There have been 3 frontiers of modern healthcare over the past 100 years.

The first frontier

In the first half of the 20th century, infectious and communicable diseases – like measles, diphtheria and influenza – meant people died young and fast. So we focused on eradicating those diseases through public health measures, immunizations and antibiotics. This was the first frontier.

The second frontier

Infectious disease was under control by the late 1950s. Lifespans increased. Then we discovered that the human body is actually made up of a number of complex systems that – left to themselves, or to us – will ultimately fail. Modern medicine then turned its attention to understanding human biology and finding ways to diagnose and treat major system failures, like heart disease, cancer and diabetes. We have been hugely successful at this.

The third frontier

We haven’t cured heart disease, diabetes, cancer, HIV or most of the health conditions that used to kill us, but we have been very successful in treating these conditions so that people are now living with them – often for long periods of time. This is the new frontier of healthcare: Complex Chronic Disease.

It presents a unique paradox and a new set of challenges for all of us. Its existence is a testament to the success of our healthcare system – and a potential threat to its future viability.

If we are to avoid this threat, we must turn our attention to becoming just as successful in this new frontier, by focusing our healthcare system on preventing and managing Complex Chronic Disease.