Biology

Function (biology)

Political science

Health care

Excellence

Public relations

Genetics

Medicine

PubMed

In these early years of the twenty-first century, scientific discovery and understanding are playing an important and growing role in meeting the challenges (human health, environmental, economic) facing societies everywhere. We have stepped into the Age of Molecular Medicine.What breakthroughs could the advances in health sciences bring? For cancer patients, the excitement centers on a new generation of treatments designed not for massive conquest but for narrowly targeted strikes against tumor cells. As science reveals more about the chemistry of mental function, diseases ranging from addiction to Alzheimer’s could become as manageable as high blood pressure.That’s just the beginning. The mapping of the human genome has set the stage for an era in which doctors use gene tests to determine which patients are most likely to benefit from a particular treatment or lifestyle regimen. And researchers are now working their way from the genome to the proteome - the vast array of biologically active protein molecules encoded by our DNA. By cataloging the 100,000 or so proteins that human genes produce, and pinpointing their functions, researchers will gain a surfeit of targets for drug molecules. Embryonic stem cells may some day help our ailing bodies produce whatever proteins they lack. The possibilities are endlessly seductive.Health is easier to preserve than it is to repair. Wonder drugs aside, most of us can still achieve longer, better lives by exercising, eating well and managing our weight. Health sciences can light the path to optimal health. System-wide healthcare reform is required to provide opportunities to create a healthier population.The promise of rapid advances in medicine “from the lab bench to the bedside” has not manifested as of yet. Great progress has been made; nevertheless understanding processes such as disease progression requires systematic insight into dynamic differences in gene regulation, interaction and function. Trends already developing in medicine will be strengthened by molecular manufacturing.Modem medicine is advancing at a breathtaking pace in the developed economies, helping people live better, longer lives. This is a remarkable achievement in which progressive healthcare policies, pharnaceutical innovations, and healthier lifestyles have played leading roles. Yet this success brings with it profound challenges, responsibilities and some hard economic truths.Many of today’s applications can be made significantly more efficient. There is an urgent need to invest in Research and Development. Human happiness and longevity will much depend on initiatives to advance disease prevention and health promotion. Cost-effective interventions are required to address the issues of quality care and inequality in health status.Academic institutions are transforming so is the Qassim University. Universities have an important role to prepare the academics, medical scientists, health professionals and researchers of tomorrow. The extraordinary advances of contemporary medical science and technology will be of scant benefit to society unless effective ways are developed for delivering this knowledge in the form of health care.Health care research is concerned with the introduction of more science, not less, into medicine.Our global mind, global aspirations and global pursuits will determine how well we stay the course and how far we go in our continuing quest for excellence.We have what it takes to seize the opportunities and rise to the challenges ahead. We start this long journey with a small step. We will journey confidently towards achieving excellence in education and research. The International Journal of Health Sciences will playa key role in linking the research with practice.

IJHS: Towards Excellence in Health Sciences.