Medical is a discipline that studies human health and disease through scientific means. It is often considered a branch of biology, although some distinguish it from that through the use of tools and methods adapted from other disciplines like physics and physical chemistry.
Medical research often aims at understanding the causes and identifying cures for diseases, conditions and infections. It also seeks to optimise healthcare delivery and improve patient outcomes. Medical science is a field that includes a wide variety of specialties such as biomedical engineering (BME), biological sciences, molecular biology, microbiology, neurology, medical genetics, and obstetrics and gynecology.
Clinical practice varies across countries, but physicians usually undergo university-based undergraduate and postgraduate education and training. Medical school graduates are awarded a doctorate in medicine (MD) or osteopathic medicine (DO).
Technology is changing the way people and organisations manage their healthcare needs. Web-based portals allow patients to upload data such as food logs or blood sugar levels to share with their providers; advanced diagnostic systems can correlate symptoms a patient is displaying with those managed before in other patients to arrive at a diagnosis; and wearable devices let them monitor their heart rate, blood pressure, tremors and physical activity.