Book Description
Written by a renowned authority on forensic science, this book introduces the non-scientific reader to the field of forensic science through an exploration of its applications to criminal invesigations, with clear explanations of the techniques, abilities, and limitations of the modern crime laboratory. The most current technologies, techniques, practices, and procedures highlight this book; the accompanying interactive crime scene CD-ROM puts readers in the role of crime scene investigations. Actual cases, including a new case study on the role of DNA evidence in the investigation of the World Trade Center crime scene, enable readers to see the integral role of forensic science in criminal investigations. Topics covered include: the crime scene, physical evidence, physical properties, organic analysis, inorganic analysis, the microscope, hairs, fibers, and paint, drugs, forensic toxicology, forensic aspects of arson and explosion investigations, forensic serology, DNA, fingerprints, firearms, toolmarks and other impressions, document and voice examination, and forensic science on the Internet. An excellent reference resource for members of the forensic science field, as well as others involved in criminal justice.
Customer Reviews:
I loved it!.......2007-08-21
I'm homeschooled and wanted to do Forensic Science as an elective. This book is written in a clear, understandable manner and is very informative. I liked how there was a chapter summary, review questions, and a case reading after every chapter. I definietly recomend this book if you want to use it as a text book or even just a good read.
Forensic Evidence.......2007-03-10
This book came as described and was very useful to learning about Forensic Science
I give a 5 star everything .......2006-10-02
The condition of the book was excellent and the service more than excellent. Received the book; Criminalistics An Intorduction to Forensic Science in time for my son to use it the next week in class. Thank you for the speed of the delivery. I would buy a used book again and hopefully it would be with the bookdude. Sorry this review was late.
Excellent Service And Condition.......2006-03-04
The book was in Excellent condition (New) and the service was great. The book arrived right on time.
correct your listing please.......2004-01-04
You're listing as a paperback version of Saferstein's "Criminalistics: an intro to forensic science," the associated lab manual by Meloan, Saferstein and another. Sort of confusing until you figure it out.
Amazon.com
Lia Lee was born in 1981 to a family of recent Hmong immigrants, and soon developed symptoms of epilepsy. By 1988 she was living at home but was brain dead after a tragic cycle of misunderstanding, overmedication, and culture clash: "What the doctors viewed as clinical efficiency the Hmong viewed as frosty arrogance." The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down is a tragedy of Shakespearean dimensions, written with the deepest of human feeling. Sherwin Nuland said of the account, "There are no villains in Fadiman's tale, just as there are no heroes. People are presented as she saw them, in their humility and their frailty--and their nobility."
Book Description
Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction
When three-month-old Lia Lee Arrived at the county hospital emergency room in Merced, California, a chain of events was set in motion from which neither she nor her parents nor her doctors would ever recover. Lia's parents, Foua and Nao Kao, were part of a large Hmong community in Merced, refugees from the CIA-run "Quiet War" in Laos. The Hmong, traditionally a close-knit and fiercely people, have been less amenable to assimilation than most immigrants, adhering steadfastly to the rituals and beliefs of their ancestors. Lia's pediatricians, Neil Ernst and his wife, Peggy Philip, cleaved just as strongly to another tradition: that of Western medicine. When Lia Lee Entered the American medical system, diagnosed as an epileptic, her story became a tragic case history of cultural miscommunication.
Parents and doctors both wanted the best for Lia, but their ideas about the causes of her illness and its treatment could hardly have been more different. The Hmong see illness aand healing as spiritual matters linked to virtually everything in the universe, while medical community marks a division between body and soul, and concerns itself almost exclusively with the former. Lia's doctors ascribed her seizures to the misfiring of her cerebral neurons; her parents called her illness, qaug dab peg--the spirit catches you and you fall down--and ascribed it to the wandering of her soul. The doctors prescribed anticonvulsants; her parents preferred animal sacrifices.
Download Description
When three-month-old Lia Lee arrived at the county hospital emergency room in Merced, California, a chain of events was set in motion from which neither she nor her parents nor her doctors would ever recover. Lia's parents, Foua and Nao Kao, were part of a large Hmong community in Merced, refugees from the CIA-run "Quiet War" in Laos. Parents and doctors both wanted the best for Lia, but their ideas about the causes of her illness and its treatment could hardly have been more different. The Hmong see illness and healing as spiritual matters linked to virtually everything in the universe, while the medical community marks a division between body and soul, and concerns itself almost exclusively with the former. Lia's doctors ascribed her seizures to the misfiring of her cerebral neurons; her parents called her illness qaug dab peg - the spirit catches you and you fall down - and ascribed it to the wandering of her soul. The doctors prescribed anticonvulsants; her parents preferred animal sacrifices. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down moves from hospital corridors to healing ceremonies, and from the hill country of Laos to the living rooms of Merced, uncovering in its path the complex sources and implications of two dramatically clashing worldviews.
Customer Reviews:
A Paradigm of the Complexities of Modern Medicine in Relation to Cuture and Ethnicity.......2007-09-30
I read "The Spirit Catches You, and You Fall Down" as a required reading for a Sociology course on Health and Ilnness in Society. This is simply put, an amazing piece of work, that not only is thorough, but has a great deal of emotion and you really are able to sense the pain, frustration, and joy, of both the Lee family and the medical community that cared for her. This work is also a testiment to the Hmong people and culture, who are often grealty overlooked in US Asian American culture. Anne Fadiman goes into great detail describing their culture, from it's language, history, and religion both here and in Loas, and to their unfortunate and tragic involvement in the US war in Vietnam which landed them in refugee camps in Thailand. My opinions vacillated at times from anger to empathy for her parents and their inability and refusal to follow the doctors advise, that could've saved their daughters life. I encourage this book to be read by anyone going into the medical field where you will encounter a myriad of ethnicities, that often fly in the face of conventional US medicine. This is nonfiction that reads with the excitement and personality of a well crafted novel.
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down .......2007-09-26
exceptional book for those involved in anything dealing with human relationships. gives unbiased information from all sides of the issue (language & cultural barriers resulting in medical "errors")
this book smacks you in the face with your own preconceptions about what families know about their child, and what professionals know about their field, and how sometimes those two don't mesh, resulting in the child being put in the middle.
oh yeah, and every once in a while you will want to yell out about "the guy hiding behind the rock." because hindsight is so clear!
Great introduction to cross cultural communication.......2007-09-04
I was assigned this book as a supplement to a Cross Cultural Communication class. It's a very interesting read about a young girl who gets caught between Eastern and Western medicine. It makes a good read to see how CCC can be so important in our daily lives. It has a good lot of medical jargon and even more characters. There are a lot of doctors that are important for various reasons. It is certainly not a light beach read. Once you read it though you'll want someone else to read it to have someone to talk about. You can get in long discussions over who is "right" and if there is a right.
Oh so predictable..........2007-08-07
Detailed, researched look at the Hmong people of Vietnam in America through the experiences of one family in the medical/hospital system as they try to help their epileptic child. Although the action takes place in California, the story would probably have been similar no matter where the family lived. Non judgemental author keeps reader engaged. Structure of the book with alternating chapters detailing the history of the Hmong and then the specific family works well. Cross cultural misunderstandings seem inevitable given language and cultural differences. Sad without being depressing.
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down.......2007-08-01
An excellent book. A powerful and moving true story of a cultural east/west clash, especially concerning medical care. I couldn't put the book down. Enlightening also when it comes to the drugs used in treating status epilecticus, specifically in children under three. I also appreciated learning about some of the political history regarding the beautiful people of Laos. My heart goes out to the Hmong people.
Average customer rating:
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Encyclopedia of Forensic and Legal Medicine, Volume 1-4
Manufacturer: Academic Press
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ASIN: 0125479700
Release Date: 2005-07-20 |
Book Description
Increasingly, high profile criminal and civil legal actions around the world highlight the interactions between medicine and the law. Forensic and legal medicine describes the body of knowledge that encompasses this interaction. The terms generally embrace forensic pathology and clinical forensic medicine. However, the nature of forensic and legal medicine is broad and may extend beyond medical and legal issues, into scientific and technical areas, and include specialist roles such as anthropology, toxicology, odontology and psychiatry. Separate from these issues is the much more widely recognized need to apply moral, ethical and human rights principles in the investigation of certain crimes, whether considering victims or perpetrators. Those involved in the practice of forensic and legal medicine and those in legal, judicial, police and other investigative organizations which require knowledge of aspects of forensic and legal medicine often need to identify appropriate and relevant information. The aim of this Encyclopedia is to provide a reliable starting point for validated information across these fields.
The success of lawsuits and prosecutions is dependent on utilizing the best services available, and knowing when to use them appropriately. All aspects of medicine are now scrutinized, not only by medical, legal and scientific professionals but also by the lay public. Such scrutiny drives and improves standards and some of these standards have come about as a result of major cases in criminal and civil courts and other tribunals around the world. The drive for much of this scrutiny derives from the intense review that occurs as a result of events taking place throughout the world in criminal and civil courts. Thus, improved methodology of detecting and documenting evidence, ensuring chains of custody and scientifically testing evidence ensures that appropriate judicial outcomes are achieved.
Teaching of forensic and legal medicine at an undergraduate level is on a worldwide basis underemphasized when compared with therapeutic specialities. Paradoxically, barely a day goes by without at least one medical news story being published of legal and forensic relevance and significance. The need for readily accessible knowledge has never been greater.
The Encyclopedia of Forensic & Legal Medicine comprehensively covers forensic and legal medicine (including related specialities and scientific, technical and legal issues) and is available online and in three printed volumes, offering any practitioner in a forensic, medical, healthcare, legal, judicial, or investigative field easily accessible and authoritative overviews on a wide range of topics.
The work is edited and written by experienced professionals with medical, legal or dual training and who are internationally renowned for their experience or expertise within their areas of specialty. The Editorial Board reflects the multidisciplinary, multi-jurisdictional and global emphasis of forensic and legal medicine.
The individual articles are written in a clear and concise manner and are supplemented by diagrams, tables and full-color images. Key further reading and extensive cross-referencing make this work an invaluable reference source for undergraduates and graduates looking for an introduction to key fields and experts reading outside their specialization.
Online access to the Encyclopedia is available on ScienceDirect. The online version will offer all that the print version does plus smooth linking, eg, to cross-referenced articles, powerful search functions, and more. Visit www.info.sciencedirect.com/reference_works/index.shtml for contact and subscription information. Access options are available even if youre not an existing ScienceDirect customer.
* Brings together all appropriate aspects of forensic medicine and legal medicine
* Contains color figures, sample forms and other materials that the reader can adapt for their own practice
* Also avaiable in an on-line version which provides numerous additional reference and research tools, additional multimedia, & powerful search functions
Average customer rating:
- Missionary student, have used this book.
- common sense
- A village health care handbook for Africa, not an EMT manual.
- Very VERY basic
- Very useful material
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Where There Is No Doctor: A Village Health Care Handbook
David Werner ,
Carol Thuman , and
Jane Maxwell
Manufacturer: Hesperian Foundation
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Where There Is No Dentist
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Wilderness Medicine, Beyond First Aid, 5th Edition
ASIN: 0942364155 |
Customer Reviews:
Missionary student, have used this book. .......2007-08-15
Excellent for use in third world countries. Every missionary should own a copy of this book. The only reason I do not give 5 stars to this book is because of the philosophies of David Werner on community development, which contradict biblical community development ideas. For instance, he promotes some non-conservative ideas about birth control. So Christians, just be careful whose hands this book gets into. I would give the same warning about the "where there is no women doctor" book. That one is definitely not worth buying, you're better off with a good basic handbook on childbirth and prenatal care.
common sense.......2007-08-05
or lack thereof, c'mon people give me a break! If there is no doctor around and you are in need of medical attention then MOVE! stop whining because you have not lifted your feet for the entire existence of the planet! This kind of thing just nauseates me. I wish them well but c'mon, move away from despair and get closer to somewhere that a doctor can help you! Progression is hard I suppose.
A village health care handbook for Africa, not an EMT manual........2007-05-30
Judging this book by its intended purpose it looks very good. Many things are basic like cleanliness, diet, don't smoke ciggarettes, etc. But I thought some were not so basic (and I couldn't find them in my boy scout manual). For example:
Page 67: the possible medicines needed for injection (Appendicitis - ampicillin or penicillin with streptomycin, syphilis - benzathine penicillin, gonorrhea - kanamycin, etc).
Page 154: six different vaccinations and the reccomended ages.
Page 169: a flowchart to care for a person with acute diarrhea (when would you give them metonidazole, or co-trimoxazole, or ampicillin?).
Page 180: treatment for pneumonia.
Page 208-210 chart: 38 different types of skin problems which include onthocerciasis, vitiligo, and kwashiorkor.
ETC.
Also the basic stuff is so well laid out that I could see it helping a worker organize their thoughts along the lines of "What do I need to check?" or "What do I need to teach those who don't know the basics?". If you were in a remote situation, people were sick wanting you to help them NOW, and THERE WAS NO DOCTOR this manual would be very reassuring to have. Stress can make you forget basics. Or maybe if you were in the States and couldn't afford health insurance and wanted to be sure you were in true need before you went to the doctor who will bill you for walking in the door?
Very VERY basic.......2007-04-26
Unless you have no experience with basic medical care you will likely find this book very elementary and you would be better off buying a boy scout's handbook, although it wouldn't cover some of the female items, it would give you more information on dealing with the day to day.
The numerous references about 'seeing a doctor' defy the title and purpose implied by the book.
Very useful material.......2007-02-24
David Werner has assembled a wonderful primer for anyone rendering care in the third world. There is useful information for everyone from lay people to MDs, well worth the time it takes to read the book. I especially like the succinct treatment plans with common and inexpensive medications. Treating patients in the third world without a laboratory, X-ray, or other modern tools takes a different mindset that WHERE THERE IS NO DOCTOR puts into perspective.
Strongly recommended. I'm taking a copy back to the mountains of Panama with me next week.
Average customer rating:
- Human Osteology!
- Use for Siding of Hands and Feet
- useful text, but not perfect
- A dissenting opinion....
- Excellent
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Human Osteology, Second Edition
Tim D. White
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Identification of Pathological Conditions in Human Skeletal Remains, Second Edition
Accessories:
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RESPeRATE Blood Pressure Lowering Device
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Airborne Effervescent Health Formula, Original Orange, 10 Tablets (Pack of 3)
ASIN: 0127466126 |
Book Description
Human Osteology, Second Edition is designed for students and professionals who wish to advance their osteological skills in terms of accurately identifying human skeletal remains, however isolated and fragmentary. These remains can then be used to deduce information about the original lives of the deceased individuals. This book will continue to be an essential text for courses on the human skeleton, as well as a basic reference and field manual for professional osteologists and anatomists, forensic scientists, paleontologists, and archaeologists.
Human Osteology, Second Edition includes nearly a decade of advances in osteological research since the first edition. Each chapter has been strengthened and updated, including a new chapter on molecular osteology and four new case studies drawn from more recent research. This edition also includes a valuable guide to electronic resources in osteology.
Key Features
* Lavishly illustrated with hundreds of exceptional photographs and drawings specifically designed to show a maximum amount of anatomical information
* Based on nearly 25 years of teaching human osteology
* Skeletal parts shown life-size for ease of study and use
* Four new case studies emphasize the correct and positive identification of human bones and teeth, which is fundamental in paleontology, archaeology, and forensic science
Customer Reviews:
Human Osteology!.......2007-09-28
This book is very helpful when learning human osteology. I really like how many pictures there are. If I can't have the real object in front of me then the book is the next best thing. Although the book is kind of pricey I think it was worth the money. Over all very good text book for the subject.
Use for Siding of Hands and Feet.......2006-12-07
I've had no problems underlining in pencil with this book. either underline lightly or place a piece of cardstock between the pages. despite the fact that a lot of bone features are ignored, it is worth the price to buy it used just for the siding of the carpals, metacarpals, phalanges, tarsals, metatarsals, and pedal phalanges.
In our human skeletal analysis lab we have at least 4 texts, including this one. Each one is lacking something the other has. It seems common for these types of texts. I've had to buy this book, and another, in addition to the required text for the course just to cover all aspects about osteology (except pathology, which is covered in a book that costs 180 bucks).
That said, if you're a physical anth major, you'll probably need more than one book anyway, since we need to know every feature on each individual bone.
useful text, but not perfect.......2006-11-09
This book is a good introductory text, and I have referred to it many times, but I can't give it 5 stars...
As someone else said, the descriptions of features on the bones were sometimes lacking.
And while the photos are big, bold, and very helpful, sometimes the single-source lighting throws shadows over features on the bones. This didn't bother me too much because I was lucky enough to study in a lab with dozens of specimens I could use to familiarize myself with the landmarks, but for students who don't have access to real bones, these photos may be insufficient.
A dissenting opinion...........2004-01-10
In order to temper the unrestrained exuberance of the former reviews, I think it is appropriate to point out what I believe are a couple of major shortcomings of this book.
Yes the photography is very good. However, the paper it is printed on is not so good. Don't try underlining any of the text with a pen or pencil; the line will be transferred to the following page. The thin paper combined with the ink on the opposite side forms a tracing paper when you mark on the page. For a price that completely wrecks a hundred dollar bill, I think the customer deserves more. Mr. White is surely wagging his vestigial tail all the way to the bank.
Most importantly, the descriptive sections of the text are very brief, with many bone features ignored. The Running Press reprint of the 1901 edition of Gray's Anatomy has a much more thorough (and much much cheaper) text of bone anatomy, although many of its formerly great illustrations have been reduced to dark blots (evidently in an effort to make the text more legible). In White's book, I would have preferred that seemingly precious text space be used for description of anatomy rather than the author spinning his (and academia's) fairy tales of how fish turned into men.
Excellent.......2003-04-14
This book is an excellent source for information on learning the bones, how to side them, and many other interesting aspects of osteology.
Average customer rating:
- Great Informational Book
- It is always good to read the text before...
- Not a good resource for this important area of inquiry
|
Cultural Diversity in Health and Illness, Sixth Edition
Rachel E. Spector
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ASIN: 0130493791 |
Book Description
The sixth edition of this best-selling resource continues to teach nursing, health professions, medical and social science readers the importance of cultural competence and cultural awareness in the health care industry. The new edition will include revised organization to create a better flow of content, new content on gererational differences, updated chapter on health care delivery system, updated illustrations and tables and MediaLink icons. For undergraduate and graduate courses in patient care and basic health related profession programs, as well as medical, social work, and other health disciplines.
Customer Reviews:
Great Informational Book.......2007-02-24
The chapters are long and detailed and filled with statistics and charts that physically show the information being presented. Overall it is a well put together book that remains uniform throughout.
It is always good to read the text before..........2005-11-27
The book is based on some solid quantitative studies and it is important that we read the text first before inclining to accept any particular views invoked by reviews. I suggest that you read the text first and then make your mind based on your reading.
Not a good resource for this important area of inquiry.......2005-05-10
This review updated by author on March 21, 2006:
I recently (Spring 2005) used this text in an undergraduate health professions course titled "Diversity in Health and Illness". The author addresses a broad scope of cultures, issues and responses to cultural needs in health care. Although the book contains much that is useful, my students found it to be, on balance, confusing and disorganized.
I believe much of this response can be attributed to poor editing. We identified numerous spelling and grammar errors throughout. Poorly edited content is also evident in several chapters. Example: "...this chapter has introduced the dominant culture's perception of health and illness through countless lenses" (pp. 67). Similarly, "...countless letters are displayed attesting to the healing powers of this statue" (pp. 106). Isn't there a more accurate word to use in place of `countless'? More importantly, ethnic and race labels are not used consistently. "Hispanic" and "Latino" are used as though they are strictly interchangeable; ditto for "Black" and "African American." Term consistency would enhance clarity.
My concerns with the text are more fundamental and numerous but I will limit myself to a few examples:
USE OF SOURCE DATA AND REFERENCE MATERIALS
Although the text is heavily laden with descriptive statistics, comparative data is often not included, thus limiting interpretations. For example, the discussion of rising expenditures for unconventional therapies in the U.S. (pp. 96) includes expenditure estimates for 1990 and 1997. Without companion statistics for conventional therapy expenditures, readers are unable to asses the magnitude of the trend. Similarly, the description of the African American population as young (54.4% are under 18 - pp. 233) is not very enlightening in the absence of corresponding percentages for the white population and the overall American population. Figure 10-3 adds little additional information.
References for culture group descriptions are often either very old (1950's - 1970's), not the definitive works, or are not sufficiently academic (encyclopedias and web pages), and should be replaced with citations for newer research reported in more rigorous formats. Several important sections contain insufficient or no reference citations. The "Health/HEALTH Care Choices" section (pp. 85) contains numerous historical claims but only a single reference to the American Heritage Dictionary.
OUT OF DATE THEORIES
Some of the sociological and anthropological concepts presented do not represent current theoretical stances. I was especially interested in exploring citations for the "Cycle of Poverty" discussion in Chapter 2, as this blame-the-victim concept has fallen out of favor in sociological circles because it ignores structural realities that are beyond the control of individuals. This conflation of structural problems with cultural phenomena inadvertently creates a situation where the subtle racist beliefs we all learn through our socialization is reinforced in the classroom. Sadly, the only citation provided in this section, (Spector 1979, pp. 148-152), refers to an earlier edition of this book. Original references should be provided.
The Chapter 3 discussion of the sick role is limited to functionalist models presented by Talcott Parsons (1966) and Edward Suchman (1965). As our society ages we are experiencing increasing levels of chronic illness and more patients cannot expect to fully recover. More recent examinations of the illness experience would be appropriate.
CULTURAL MISUNDERSTANDINGS
The discussion of historical background for Native American cultures (pp. 186-188) is particularly dismal. While somewhat correct in broad outlines, the text reads like a less-than-distinguished freshman research paper, and includes various repeats. The discussion of traditional health beliefs and practices is limited to those of the Navajo and Hopi - important southwestern groups - but not representative of all Native Americans. Sources cited are limited to a few 1960's and 1970's references. Strains of the Noble Savage are also evident, particularly with reference to the discussion of "True Indian love" and domestic violence (pp. 200).
The role of voodoo in African American traditions is somewhat overstated (Chapter 10), and is presented as an explanation for present-day underutilization of the allopathic system (pp. 239). At the same time, more realistic explanations are omitted. Chief among those are the disproportionate poverty experienced by the community as well as recent and historical sources of distrust between the African Americans and the largely white medical establishment (e.g., antebellum forced medical experimentation, Tuskegee Experiment, Holmesburg Prison Experiments).
INTERPRETATIONS
My graduate degree is in anthropology, and although I expected some level of disconnect between my training and the nursing orientation of Spector, I found myself admonishing my students several times over to ignore specific passages and sections in this text as irrelevant or just plain wrong.
For example, in the section titled "Cultural Phenomena Affecting Health", in Chapter 1, subheadings include "Biological Variations" and "Social Organization". Confusion between biology and culture appears in other places as well, and was especially troublesome for my students with their limited previous exposure to the concept of culture.
The "Social Organization" subheading precedes a disjointed (but brief) discussion of childhood socialization, family organization, and barriers to health care access. Perhaps the first two could be combined in a section "Socialization". Regarding the barriers to health care access (e.g., unemployment, poverty and lack of health insurance), these could be better characterized as economic barriers rather than social barriers. Diminished economic resources are correlated to large extent with particular demographic groups, but one should avoid essentializing the availability of resources as a series of ethnic or cultural traits. Conceptualizing these issues as cultural phenomena obscures the contributions of racism, xenophobia, and unequal distribution of wealth to the problems of unequal access. Spector draws these categories from a previously published article, and the uncritical use of other people's published materials is apparent throughout the book.
Spector's background is nursing, and on balance, I am not sure that this provides one with the appropriate skills necessary to summarize the fundamentals of culture and cultural diversity. Theorising culture and society is (and should remain) the domain of anthropologists and sociologists (and perhaps psychologists). Like nursing and most other applied and academic fields of inquiry, understanding culture requires a great deal of specialized education.
On my initial reading I suspected a functionalist interpretation of the intersection between health care and culture, but on further examination this book is more like an online encyclopedia where everything (including the kitchen sink) is thrown in. What is missing is a critical evaluation of the usefulness and theoretical implications of others' data and interpretations. The result is conflicting content and a great deal of confusion.
A final example: Spector rejects the WHO health definition but does not suggest a better alternative. Instead she seems to think that health is indefinable: "I would define health as an undefined term" (pp. 50). I agree that students should maintain an open mind, but perhaps a series of limited definitions addressing a variety of situations would be more useful in the classroom. Social science practitioners and researchers struggle with variability in human behavior as a matter of course, but that struggle is mitigated through a realization that definitions are often necessary heuristic devices rather than complete summaries. Put simply, if we can't know a thing, aren't we just wasting our time?
I have reviewed a number of alternate texts over the past year and have found the problems discussed here to be present in several other texts. Perhaps the academic pursuit of cultural care is still in its nascent stage.
In any case, I have found "Culture in Rehabilitation: from Competency to Proficiency" edited by Royeen and Crabtree (Pearson 2006) to be a much better text for my class. The authors represent a variety of health professions and the text was reviewed by a similarly diverse panel of ten. Most of the contributions present robust bibliographies, rely on up-to-date social science research, and avoid the culture-as-checklist approach. I will review the text in detail sometime in May 2006.
Book Description
Winner of the 1983 Pulitzer Prize and the Bancroft Prize in American History, this is a landmark history of how the entire American health care system of doctors, hospitals, health plans, and government programs has evolved over the last two centuries.
Customer Reviews:
The best analysis on american health care.......2006-12-28
The evolution of American medicine is a fascinating story and it is told very well. The analysis is excellent and this really provides a great perspective about how the US got to the corporate system we are now on. I wish there would be an update that would take us from 1980-2000. The debate over how socialized medicine did not take root is very interesting and well done in the book. If you are getting started or an expert this book has something for everyone. Highly recommend for those who are trying to understand how doctors and hospitals developed in America.
So much information, but with an analysis that makes the point!.......2005-07-10
This is a must read for understanding American medicine. It actually has a straightforward point of view in its focus on the autonomy and status of the medical profession and the distinguishing feature in the evolution of health care institutions. The role of the medical profession in health care is unique in our society and this books historically follows how the profession has used its position to counter capital enterprise and public programs to meet pressing social needs. He makes clear that the development of valid scientific theories and their applicating into effective treatments was critical to affirming the control of physicians. Otherwise the political disputes over licensing and accreditation could not have succeeded. Obviously the emergence of HMO's and other health insurers represent the latest source of conflict. Again this work presents the issues clearly and objectively.
Excellent book.......2005-06-17
I highly recommend this book to anyone in the health care industry or anyone interested in the history of American medicine.
Starr basically explores why/how physicians so powerful politically, socially, and economically. GREAT BOOK!
Great history of American medicine.......2004-01-09
For anyone interested in the healthcare as a profession or area of study, I can't recommend this book highly enough. Despite the 20 years since its publication, Paul Starr's Pulitzer prize winner is still relevant today and in retrospect his projections made of the future of healthcare in America are surpisingly prescient.
The first book describes the development of the medical profession in early America providing a fascinating look at the social evolution of American society. The second book delineates the rise of doctors, hospitals and medical schools in latter half of the 19th to the early 20th century with the rise of science and a professional authority. The third book shifts the focus from the doctors and to the industry that medicine became as well as the various attempts at healthcare reform in response to rising healthcare costs.
My only criticism is that Starr should have devoted more pages to the root causes behind the rising healthcare costs that drove the reforms of the 1960-70s described in the third book.
Blame it on the AMA.......2003-10-18
This book traces the evolution of America's disjointed healthcare system, from the horror of the early hospitals to the formation of the medical profession. It also explains how, as the early profession was fighting for the right to exist, it took virtual possession of the rest of the healthcare system. Every Democratic president since FDR has attempted some type of major healthcare reform, only to be opposed by the American Medical Association (AMA) because organized doctorhood thought it had too much to lose.
This book is an effortless read for students of sociology or those that have a great interest in the history of medicine. Published in 1983, it easily predicts some of the current problems in American healthcare, because the powerful interests that determine the delivery of healthcare are still the same. It also predicts some of the circumstances that will finally bring America around to some sort of rational, universal, healthcare coverage.
Book Description
The 25th-anniversary edition of the premier text in medical anthropology. The newest edition of the premier teaching text in medical anthropology is thoroughly revised to reflect new developments in the field. Widespread awareness of emerging infectious diseases and global environmental change makes the ecological perspective of the McElroy-Townsend text even more relevant to students than when it was first published. Medical Anthropology in Ecological Perspective integrates biocultural, environmental, and evolutionary approaches to the study of human health. Research by human biologists and paleopathologists illuminates the history and prehistory of disease, while the work of cultural and applied anthropologists addresses contemporary health issues. Celebrating the book's 25th anniversary, the Fourth Edition includes increased coverage of emerging diseases, evolutionary medicine, the homeless, health disparities, and forensic anthropology. New chapters treat reproduction and careers in applied medical anthropology. New "Profiles" (case studies) on stress and toxic chemicals have been added and other profiles have been updated, further augmenting the classroom-friendly features the book is noted for.
Customer Reviews:
Dry Reading, But Useful.......2002-02-16
McElroy and Townsend's medical anthropology text is one of the classics in its field. I personally find the going very slow; I don't think that academic texts necessarily need to be presented in so pedantic a format. However, the information contained in the studies is quite useful to the anthropology student's understanding of disease in a cultural and ecological context.
Book Description
This book provides the first clear, comprehensive, and accessible account of complex adaptive social systems, by two of the field's leading authorities. Such systems--whether political parties, stock markets, or ant colonies--present some of the most intriguing theoretical and practical challenges confronting the social sciences. Engagingly written, and balancing technical detail with intuitive explanations, Complex Adaptive Systems focuses on the key tools and ideas that have emerged in the field since the mid-1990s, as well as the techniques needed to investigate such systems. It provides a detailed introduction to concepts such as emergence, self-organized criticality, automata, networks, diversity, adaptation, and feedback. It also demonstrates how complex adaptive systems can be explored using methods ranging from mathematics to computational models of adaptive agents.
John Miller and Scott Page show how to combine ideas from economics, political science, biology, physics, and computer science to illuminate topics in organization, adaptation, decentralization, and robustness. They also demonstrate how the usual extremes used in modeling can be fruitfully transcended.
Customer Reviews:
Annie Wu -- Book #1.......2007-08-10
I am a purchasing agent who buys books for my faculty, and as far as I know, this faculty member is very impressed with this particular book.
The Emergence of Convergence .......2007-08-04
At the time of writing this review, this book isn't searchable through Amazon, that's too bad because if you're reading the reviews wondering if it's worth buying, just browsing through any page from the intro or appendix B would clearly resolve any remnant hesitation. This book is a must have for anyone even remotely interested in complex adaptive systems. Scott Page and John Miller dress the landscape and state of the art of computational social science, the issues are motivated from the ground up and the existing approaches to resolve them explicitly detailed, yet using clear and jargon free language. For example, descriptions of the many concepts repeatedly used in the scientific method (of CAS et al) such as ergodicity or optimization theory are refreshing and insightful, simply stuff you don't get from textbooks, but rather that one would learn over years of experience doing.
In summary, the authors are handing us an expert summary of literature and developments of a complex field in a concise, fun and delightful read, it would be a shame to miss it.
Book Description
A star writer for the New York Times Styles section captures the follies, frauds, and fanaticism that fuel the American pursuit of youth and beauty in a wickedly revealing excursion into the burgeoning business of cosmetic enhancement.
Americans are aging faster and getting fatter than any other population on the planet. At the same time, our popular notions of perfect beauty have become so strict it seems even Barbie wouldn’t have a chance of making it into the local beauty pageant.
Aging may be a natural fact of life, but for a growing number of Americans its hallmarks—wrinkles, love handles, jiggling flesh—are seen as obstacles to be conquered on the path to lasting, flawless beauty. In Beauty Junkies Alex Kuczynski, whose sly wit and fearless reporting in the Times has won her fans across the country, delivers a fresh and irresistible look at America's increasingly desperate pursuit of ultimate beauty by any means necessary.
From a group of high-maintenance New York City women who devote themselves to preserving their looks twenty-four hours a day, to a “surgery safari” in South Africa complete with “after” photographs of magically rejuvenated patients posing with wild animals, to a podiatrist's office in Manhattan where a “foot face-lift” provides women with the right fit for their $700 Jimmy Choos, Kuczynski portrays the all-American quest for self-transformation in all its extremes. In New York, lawyers become Botox junkies in an effort to remain poker-faced. In Los Angeles, women of an uncertain age nip and tuck their most private areas, so that every inch of their bodies is as taut as their lifted faces. Across the country, young women graduating from high school receive gifts of breast implants – from their parents.
As medicine and technology stretch the boundaries of biology, Kuczynski asks whether cosmetic surgery might even be part of human evolution, a kind of cosmetic survival of the fittest – or firmest? With incomparable portraits of obsessive patients and the equally obsessed doctors who cater to their dreams, Beauty Junkies examines the hype, the hope, and the questionable ethics surrounding the advent of each new miraculous technique. Lively and entertaining, thought-provoking and disturbing, Beauty Junkies is destined to be one of the most talked-about books of the season.
Customer Reviews:
Extreme Critic.......2007-09-28
The endless struggle against looking old or inadequate, the inability to accept the changing or imperfect body and face, coupled with the relentless promotion of the technology to reverse the aging process, spawned a $15 billion industry in America. This book discusses the moral, ethical and socio-economic implications of readily available services like liposuction, breast augmentation, face lifts and botox injections.
Kuczynski's reporting is by no means ground-breaking. The book is certainly not an outright condemnation of cosmetic procedures and vanity, but don't expect anything balanced or objective. Its tone is definitely negative and very much against cosmetic surgery.
After throwing a lot of stunning figures (numbers) and highlighting the extreme extent to which some American women go to make themselves look younger or more beautiful. She talks about "surgery safari"s in South Africa. This is followed by a chapter on the "rise and fall of botox". A very concise history of this "magic bullet" against aging, but it would be hard to convince the public that the cases which ended up in disaster/death are representative of the huge number of satisfied botox patients.
Next, Kuczynski goes into the history of reconstructive surgery. This branch of medicine has, over the years, shifted from rehabilitating disfigured soldiers to perfecting the faces of vain people.
The link between HMO hassles and the flourishing of cosmetic surgery industry is an interesting one. But the author goes further than that. The media fixes our notions on what is beautiful. The herd behaviour influences people to improve themselves both inside and outside. The result - nobody is plain anymore. Evolution won't take its course! The author is actually worried that women who can play the role of grandmothers are getting fewer in numbers. Then, she goes on to expose juicy details on the disunity of the medical community, the unflattering ways in which cosmetic surgeons market themselves.
Finally, we get an inkling into why the author takes her stand. She recounts a traumatic experience with a Restylane injection in her lip. Another chapter on "the fatal quest for beauty" and a very interesting experiment (and results) in which the author begs for breast augmentation funds online.
Beauty Junkies is a a very well-organised, well-reserached and well-written book. But like some of the unnecessary surgeries she mentions, I think that Kuczynski's views are a bit on the extreme side. A good read for those obsessed with cosmetic surgery, but don't forget to put matters in proper perspective.
Survival of the Prettiest: The Science of Beauty
Scary, but good read........2007-08-01
Beauty Junkies, by Alex Kuczynski, gives us the history of plastic and cosmetic surgery, the charlatans, the risks, the popularity especially in the U.S. and its ridiculous extremes. The story is told deftly, with humor and a sense of veritas: the author herself had undergone several procedures, including one that had the unintended effect of swelling her mouth to grotesque proportions (a severe response and fortunately for her, a temporary one). This last experience compelled her to wean herself from her growing obsession with cosmetic surgery and procedures.
Now, although the trend of excessive surgical change doesn't only apply to females, it's with the females that it is most prevalent and to me, most offensive: to change oneself into the porn star mold (i.e., sexual object), to reduce one's features so the result is a person indistinguishable form scores of other blandly appealing "beauties" (i.e., loss of that which makes us unique) or to chase youth as if it were the only thing worth having. It's sad that the inner selves of these people - intellect, creativity, personality, achievement - is so neglected and disparaged - in order to maintain a superficial and ultimately impermanent illusion. Ms. Kuczynski, in fact, discusses a woman for whom her appearance - and all the supporting procedures - is ALL she does with her time and money. This book is a cautionary tale, and an honest and entertaining - if disheartening - read.
Informative chit chat.......2007-05-15
This book was an eye-opener for someone not familiar with cosmetic surgery and beauty procedures. Lots of interesting information but rather rambling and lots of spin on the info.
beauty junkies.......2007-03-13
it is an overall goodbook,but one thing attracts the attention is that the author is very self centered.one cannot deny the good sides of plastic surgery or its substitutes,like botox or others in the same field.
being born not a long time ago,the author does not know how lucky all women are today to have handy so many ways to stay beautiful and young.eversince humankind exists,human beings have been looking for the magical recipes for staying young.the author was born when all these fights were elements of the past.exagerating?maybe but why be so intolerant if people feel like doing it???? intolerance is what drives to such extremes in working on yourself but it is fashionable now to be
''natural''........let us wait until she really NEEDS it badly.would she prefer then to be a junky or an old rejected hag?????
Excellent........2006-12-18
I'm not much interested in cosmetic surgery (which is not the same as plastic surgery, one of the things I learned from the book), but I am a HUGE fan of Alex Kuczynski's work so will read anything she writes. For instance, I don't like shopping, but I always read her NYT column, Critical Shopper, just for the fun of it.
As I expected, I found this a fascinating book and whizzed through it in two days. Lots of great information. As the title indicates, this isn't a guide for people who are considering cosmetic surgery, but an analysis of the industry and the trends behind it. She throws in some of her own experiences, which are just as (or perhaps more) intriguing as the reportorial sections.
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- Drugs, Society, and Human Behavior with PowerWeb
- Dynamics of Mass Communications: Media in the Digital Age with Media World DVD and PowerWeb
- Entering the Castle: Exploring Your Mystical Experience of God: 9-CD Live Lecture!
- Family in Transition (14th Edition)
- Family Violence: Legal, Medical, and Social Perspectives (4th Edition)
- Father Joe: The Man Who Saved My Soul
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