Is medicine an art or a science?

Answer 1

It is actually both! Medical diagnosis and treatments are often based on scientific study, but putting all of the patient's symptoms and medical tests and laboratory tests together along with the diagnostician's clinical experience is an art.
It is not always the most intelligent person that makes the best physician.
(I've seen this up close and the intelligent but extremely ignorant surgeon was dismissed after gross negligence and a few inadvertent ruptured spleens.)

Answer 2

Science

Answer 3

It is educationally a science but in practice a little of both.

It is a science because you need a tremendous understanding if all the workings of the human body and how different medications/Rx(treatments) can affect it.

It is an art in the sense that you direct the patient in such a way they give you the answers you need to know, how they will react to questions, the way to ask them and the way to possibly tell them something they don't want to know.

Being able to do all this with so much knowledge is a true art. You are almost an actor.

Also being able to relate to the patient in any given situation takes alot of doing. e.g. in a trauma situation when you kKNOW the person is going to die You keep reassueing them until their last breath and make it as easy for them as possible.

The hardest part is being able to do all this and then go home at the end of your duty and deal with things in order to live your life in a normal way.

Answer 4

both, I dprobably suggest more science than art

it has a scientific underpinning, there is a vast amount of knowledge of medical conditions and how to treat them, developed using the scientific method

however diagnosing illensses can be a (black) art, because as a medical practioner you dont always have the full symptoms, you dont have a detailed knoweldge of every possible interreaction of condition or problem.

also some medical problems are more mental than physical (ie people can / will put up with or find cures if they are being attended to or cared for (the placebo effect is a prime example).

some practises of medicine are more guesswork or mental work than scientific (in some cases you can easily identify a problrm prescribe some medicine or change and patient gets better, some require more mental agility to identify the problrm(s), and / or get the patient to open up.

Answer 5

Hands down, Science.

Answer 6

I'd say a good deal of both, the technicalities of medicine require scientific research, study and application. The humanity of medicine, patient communication, empathy, psychological support and therapy is a total art form and is every bit as important as the latter!

Answer 7

Traditional medicine is definitely science because it's based upon empirical evidence.

Holistic medicine can be considered art if you wish to define it this way since they usually originate from beliefs. I would put Massage therapy, Accupuncture, Chinese Herbalism, etc., in this category.

Answer 8

A little of both. It requires a great deal of skill and knowledge--science. However, it also requires creative thinking an being open to new ideas--art. Thus, the best doctors are both scientists and artists.

Answer 9

It is a scientific art when referring to plastic surgery, corrections
etc. It is pure science in the other medical fields.

Answer 10

I would say it's a science unless you consider things like reconstructive surgery as art. It's still pretty scientific though...