Acute Versus Preventive Care

Health care pedagogy in the United States can be divided into two phases: before the Flexner Report was published in 1910 and after its publication. Ultimately, many other Western countries followed suit. Prior to 1910, medical education and medical licensure in the United States was largely unregulated and almost anyone could start a school to train doctors, or a practicing physician could supervise an apprentice who would then begin treating patients him or herself. However, with the Industrial Revolution, the federal government commissioned a study of medical education and the results of that analysis were contained in the Flexner Report. The report highlighted the lack of standardized education, state or federal regulations, and required pedagogical outcomes.

To overcome these issues, the Flexner Report recommended that all ...