Ok so I am feeling a bit conflicted right now and just need someone to help straighten me out. For the past few years, I've been dreaming about studying how computing methods can benefit the biological sciences, specifically in genomics.

So I started a program at school and one of my first classes is actually a statistics course and the professor got really excited when I told her what I was going to be studying. See we have to do a project in our course and she thought it was perfect because there is a lot of research going on right now on how drugs can be tailored based on the genetic makeup of the patients.

I felt a huge screech in my head when she mentioned drug research! I think that drugs can and have helped us quite a bit but I don't think drugs are the answer to everything and I think doctors are too quick to prescribe drugs when other treatments can be just as effective or complimentary at least. Popping a pill to cure your ails highly concerns me!

So now I'm a bit disheartened in that I may be full steam towards an industry that encourages our reliance on pharmaceuticals to cure everything. Sure I think it'd be nice if cancer treatments could be made more effective based on gene studies but what about the holistic view? What about the prevention of things such as heart disease, diabetes, etc? What about complimentary medicine?

Am I blowing things out of proportion? Are drug companies not as evil as I think and not only out to make a profit and screw everyone else in the process?

I think that drug research is just that, and it doesn't always support the chemical treatment side of things. You could maybe take this programming later on to other holistic places and help them do research on and stats on their treatments, as well. Things like massage and reikki have been proven relevant due to research and stats. So, I hope you know that your work has a place in drug therapy as well as homeopathic and holistic therapies.

Jenny

Yeah, that's tough. I have been in the medical field for 15 years (pharmacy for 8 of them) yet I am highly interested in homeopathy, acupuncture, alternative medicine, etc.

I am of two minds of this also. On one hand I think pharmaceuticals have changed lives, can help, can heal, can fix.

What I think the problem is, is that too many people depend on them instead of fixing what the real issue is, mostly because docs are so easy to hand out a pill (most of the time that they get for free from the drug companies *ahem*). I have worked in medical clinics where the drug reps come in with their new drug, inform the physicians about it and give free samples. All of a sudden, every patient is now on this new drug.

Drugs are just faster and easier. For example, if you have a fever or pain, you "could" technically make some white willow bark tea.....or you could just pop an aspirin. what do most people do?

So, I understand your concern. Is there going to be any room in your career for education about holistic/alternative approaches? Or is it strictly pharmaceutical drug research?

~CGH~

I don't think you have to jump on the drug bandwagon any more than any other health professional or research does. That is to say ... plenty don't, but it's an uphill climb. It's getting better.