Healthcare

A. Match the sentence in the left-hand column with a sentence in the right-hand column. Use the words in bold to help you.

PROBLEMS

1. Mrs Brady has suffered from terrible rheumatism (bệnh thấp khớp) for years.

2. More women than men are affected by arthritis (n-chứng viên khớp).

3. Air conditioning units are often responsible for spreading infections around an office.

4. Cardiovascular disease is becoming more common in Britain.

5. Too much exposure (n-phơi nhiễm) to the sun can cause skin cancer.

6. It is important not to eat too much food with a high cholesterol content (hàm lượng).['kontent]

7. Too many people these days live a sedentary (adj-ít vận động) lifestyle.

8. People in positions of responsibility often have stress-related illnesses.

9. Premature babies are vulnerable to illnesses. (sinh non dễ bị bệnh)

10. The National Health Service is suffering from cutbacks (n-cắt bớt) and underfunding.

11. The AIDS virus is incurable. (adj-vô phương cứu chữa)

(A) Illnesses which affect the circulation (n-sự lưu thông, lưu hành) of blood are particularly (adv-đặc biệt) common with people who are overweight.

(B) This is deposited on the walls of the arteries (n-bệnh viêm động mạch) and can block them.

(C) They can easily be spread from (v-lây lan từ) one person to another.

(D) Pains or stiffness in the joints (n-khớp nối) or muscles can be very difficult to live with.

(E) They don’t get enough exercise.

(F) Their immune (miễn dịch) system is not properly (adv-đúng mức) developed and can be easily hurt.

(G) The painful inflammation (chứng viêm) of a joint may require surgery.

(H) The government has reduced its expenditure (n-tiêu dùng, phí tổn) in this area.

(I) But there are drugs which can slow down (v-làm chậm) its cell-destroying properties.

(J) Once the body’s cells start growing abnormally (adv-bất bình thường), a cure can be difficult to find.

(K) The pressures of a high-powered job can cause nervous strain (căng thẳng thần kinh), which may require drugs.

B. Replace the words or expressions in bold with a word or expression from the box which has

the same meaning.

CURES

protein • holistic medicine • a diet • minerals • vitamins

therapeutic • traditional medicines • welfare state

surgeon (bác sĩ phẩu thuật) • active • consultant • conventional medicine

1. If you suffer from (v-chịu đựng) a bad back, a massage may be able to cure or relieve the disorder (n-rối loạn).

2. One of the secrets of remaining in good health is to choose food to eat that is high in fibre  (chất sơ) and low in fat (n-chất béo).

3. Most people, when they are ill, rely on modern pills and tablets to cure them.

4. Some old-fashioned cures for illnesses, such as herbal tablets and remedies, are becoming increasingly (adv-ngày càng) popular.

5. Many people are turning to treatments which involve the whole person, including their mental (adj-tinh thần) health, rather than just dealing with the symptoms of the illness.

6. Doctors sometimes refer their patients to a medical specialist attached to a hospital.

7. It takes many years of training to become a doctor specializing in surgery. (chuyên về phẩu thuật)

8. Meat, eggs and nuts are rich sources of a compound (n-hợp chất) which is an essential part of living cells (tế bào), and which is essential to keep the human body working properly. (adv-đúng đắn)

9. On his holiday, he had to take essential substances (n-chất) which are not synthesized by the body but are found in food and are needed for growth and health, because the food he ate lacked the B and C groups.

10. Calcium and zinc (kẽm) are two of the most important substances found in food.

11. Most doctors recommend an energetic (adj-mạnh mẽ) lifestyle, with plenty of exercise.

12. British people enjoy free healthcare thanks to the large amount of money which is spent to make sure they have adequate (adj-đầy đủ, tương xứng) health services.

C. Now look at this extract from a magazine article and complete the gaps with one of the words or expressions from Tasks A and B. In some cases, more than one answer may be possible. You may need to change the form of some of the words.

A cure for the future in the past?

For over fifty years, the people of Britain have relied on the 1________ to make sure they have

adequate health services. But now the National Health Service is sick. Government 2__________

and 3_______ are forcing (v-buộc, ép buộc) hospitals to close, and waiting lists for treatment are getting longer.

Under such circumstances (n-trường hợp, tình huống), it is no surprise that more people are turning to private (but expensive) healthcare.

For some, however, there are alternatives (n-lựa chọn khác). They are turning their back on (v-quay lưng lại với) modern pills, tablets and other 4________ . It seems paradoxical (adj-nghịch lý, ngược đời), but in an age of microchips and high technology, 5________ (the old-fashioned cures that our grandparents relied on) is making a comeback.

Consider these case studies:

Maude is 76 and has been suffering from 6_______ for almost ten years. “The inflammation (n-chứng viêm) in my joints was almost unbearable (adj-ko chịu nổi), and my doctor referred me to a 7_______ at the London Hospital. I was told that I needed 8_________ , but would need to wait for at least two years before I could have the operation. In desperation (trong tuyệt vọng), I started having massage sessions. To my surprise, these were very 9_______ , and while they didn’t cure the disorder (sự rối loạn), they did relieve (làm dịu) it to some extent (phạm vi, quy mô)”.

Ron is 46. His high-powered city job was responsible for a series of 10_______ illnesses, and the drugs he took did little to relieve (v-làm dịu) the nervous strain. “I read about treatments which involve the whole person rather than the individual symptoms, but I had always been sceptical (adj-hoài nghi, ngờ vực) about 11______ . However, my friend recommended a dietician (n-chuyên gia dinh dưỡng) who advised me that part of my problem was 12_______-related.

Basically, the foods I was eating were contributing to my disorder. She gave me a list of foods that would provide the right 13_______ and 14_______ to keep me in good health. At the same time, she recommended a more 15______ lifestyle - running, swimming, that kind of thing. I’m a bit of a couch potato, and the 16______ lifestyle I had lived was compounding the problem. Now I feel great!” So is there still a place in our lives for modern medicine? While it is true that some infections and viruses may be prevented by resorting to alternative medicine, more serious illnesses such as 17______ need more drastic (adj-mạnh mẽ, quyết liệt) measures. We do need our health service at these times, and we shouldn’t stop investing in its future. But we mustn’t forget that for some common illnesses, the cure may lie in the past.

Answers:

A.

1. D 2. G (a combination of 1 and 2 is called rheumatoid arthritis) 3. C 4. A 5. J 6. B 7. E 8. K 9. F (we can also say that their bodies lack resistance to illnesses) 10. H (The National Health Service is a system of free doctors, nurses, hospitals and clinics run by the government in Britain. Many people in Britain prefer private healthcare because this is generally considered to be more efficient) 11. I

B.

1. therapeutic (the noun is therapy. A person who provides a therapeutic service is called a therapist)
2. a diet (this refers to the food we eat. If you go on a diet, you eat less in order to lose weight)

3. conventional medicine
4. traditional medicines
5. holistic medicine (an example of this is aromatherapy)
6. consultant
7. surgeon (surgery is the treatment of disease which requires an operation to cut into or remove part of the body. Do not confuse this with a surgery, which is a room where a normal doctor, sometimes called a family doctor or general practitioner - a GP - sees their patients)
8. protein
9. vitamins
10. minerals
11. active (the opposite of this is sedentary - see Task 1)
12. welfare state (other features of a welfare state include providing citizens with adequate housing, education and public transport)

C.

1. welfare state 2 / 3. cutbacks / underfunding (in either order) 4. conventional medicine 5. traditional medicine 6. arthritis 7. consultant ( we can also use the word specialist) 8. surgery 9. therapeutic 10. stress-related 11. holistic medicine 12. diet 13 / 14. vitamins / minerals (in either order) 15. active 16. sedentary 17. cancer

Other words and expressions which you might find useful include:

prescription / mental health / physical health / blood system / National Insurance / research / the World Health Organization (the WHO) / blood pressure / cure / curable / incurable / remedy / prevention / operating theatre

Health problems:

• addiction (addictions)

NOUN Addiction is the condition of taking harmful drugs and being unable to stop taking them. ■ long-term addiction to nicotine

• allergy (allergies)

NOUN If you have a particular allergy, you become ill or get a rash when you eat, smell, or touch something that does not normally make people ill. ■ Food allergies can result in an enormous variety of different symptoms.

• cancer (cancers)

NOUN Cancer is a serious disease in which cells in a person’s body increase rapidly in an uncontrolled way, producing abnormal growths. ■ a cancer research charity

• dehydration

UNCOUNTABLE NOUN You are suffering from dehydration if you lose too much water from your body. ■ Cholera causes severe dehydration.

• disease (diseases)

NOUN A disease is an illness that affects people, animals or plants, for example one which is caused by bacteria or infection. ■ the rapid spread of disease in the area

• infection (infections)

NOUN An infection is a disease caused by germs or bacteria. ■ Ear infections are common in pre-school children.

• obesity

UNCOUNTABLE NOUN Someone suffering from obesity is extremely fat. ■ The excessive consumption of sugar leads to obesity

• stroke (strokes)

NOUN If someone has a stroke, a blood vessel in their brain bursts or becomes blocked, which may kill them or make them unable to move one side of their body. ■ He had a minor stroke in 1987, which left him partly paralyzed.

Verbs associated with treatment:

• administer (administers, administering, administered)

VERB If a doctor or nurse administers a drug, they give it to a patient. ■ Paramedics are trained to administer certain drugs.

• admit (admits, admitting, admitted)

VERB If someone is admitted to hospital they are taken into hospital for treatment and kept there until they are well enough to go home. ■ She was admitted to hospital with a soaring temperature.

• diagnose (diagnoses, diagnosing, diagnosed)

VERB If someone or something is diagnosed as having a particular illness or problem, their illness or problem is identified. ■ Almost a million people are diagnosed with colon cancer each year.

• discharge (discharges, discharging, discharged)

VERB When someone is discharged from hospital, they are officially allowed to leave, or told they must leave. ■ He has a broken nose but may be discharged today.

• examine (examines, examining, examined)

VERB If a doctor examines you, he or she looks at your body, feels it, or does simple tests in order to check how healthy you are. ■ Another doctor examined her and could still find nothing wrong.

• screen (screens, screening, screened)

VERB To screen for a disease means to examine people to make sure that they do not have it. ■ Men over 50 are routinely screened for prostate abnormalities.

• vaccinate (vaccinates, vaccinating, vaccinated)

VERB A vaccine is a harmless form of the germs that cause a particular disease. If a person or animal is vaccinated, they are given a vaccine, usually by injection, to prevent them getting that disease. ■ Dogs must be vaccinated against distemper.