In this post, I propose rethinking and renaming the medically-related neuroscience disciplines into a new specialty called neuroscience medicine.
Basic neuroscience research has evolved and emerged as a powerful discipline due to the increasing use of multidisciplinary research teams. Basic neuroscience involves collaboration of various scientific disciplines including (but not limited to):
- molecular biology
- genetics
- cognitive science
- psychology
- statistics
- brain imaging
In a similar multidisciplinary manner, I propose thinking of neuroscience medicine as the following medical specialties:
Core specialties
- Psychiatry
- Neurology
Supporting specialties
- Neurosurgery
- Neuroradiology
- Neuropathology
- Neuropsychology
- Psychotherapy
- Neuropharmacology
Psychiatry and neurology are core specialties as they represent the primary clinical disciplines involved in the diagnosis and treatment of the key brain disorders including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, seizure disorder, traumatic brain injury.
This proposal is not novel or without significant previous thoughtful discussion by leaders in science and medicine.
Most notably, then director of NIMH Dr. Thomas Insel published a commentary on the specialty of psychiatry as a clinical neuroscience discipline. In this commentary he noted how mental disorders can be best seen as complex genetic disorders. Mental disorders appear to involve gene-environment interactions. He emphasizes that psychiatry's impact on public health "will require that mental disorders be understood and treated as brain disorders".
Others have argued for the integration if not merging of neurology and psychiatry into a neuropsychiatry discipline. I think neuroscience medicine is a better term for the combination of these two disciplines. I also think neuroscience medicine is better than the alternative of clinical neuroscience. Most lay individuals do not know what clinical means.
In a previous post, I highlighted a recent review of the future of basic neuroscience education calling for enhanced direct interaction between basic neuroscience and the clinical neuroscience. A medical specialty called neuroscience medicine would be a great format for integration and collaboration with basic neuroscience training and research.
The blog format does not allow for a more extensive post covering important implications of this proposal such as training, transition from current models, multidisciplinary research models or financial barriers or incentives. I will leave these topics to some future posts or other forums.
However, I do think names make a difference and I think Neuroscience Medicine has some significant advantages over some of our current structure of medical training and clinical care models.
The time has come. It is a time of tremendous opportunities to advance the diagnosis and treatment of brain disorders. Neuroscience medicine is a new concept that holds promise for how we conceptualize and organize our multidisciplinary efforts to reduce the burden of brain disorder around the world.
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Graphic of Neuroscience Medicine is an original by the author.
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