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Blind spots : when medicine gets it wrong, and what it means for our health / by Makary, Marty,author.;
Includes bibliographical references.More Americans have peanut allergies today than at any point in history. Why? In 2000, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a strict recommendation that parents avoid giving their children peanut products until they're three years old. Getting the science perfectly backward, triggering intolerance with lack of early exposure, the US now leads the world in peanut allergies-and this misinformation is still rearing its head today. How could the experts have gotten it so wrong? Dr. Marty Makary asks, Could it be that many modern-day health crises have been caused by the hubris of the medical establishment? Experts said for decades that opioids were not addictive, igniting the opioid crisis. They refused menopausal women hormone replacement therapy, causing unnecessary suffering. They demonized natural fat in foods, driving Americans to processed carbohydrates as obesity rates soared. They told citizens that there are no downsides to antibiotics and prescribed them liberally, causing a drug-resistant bacteria crisis. When modern medicine issues recommendations based on good scientific studies, it shines. Conversely, when modern medicine is interpreted through the harsh lens of opinion and edict, it can mold beliefs that harm patients and stunt research for decades. In Blind Spots, Dr. Makary explores the latest research on critical topics ranging from the microbiome to childbirth to nutrition and longevity and more, revealing the biggest blind spots of modern medicine and tackling the most urgent yet unsung issues in our $4.5 trillion health care ecosystem. The path to medical mishaps can be absurd, entertaining, and jaw-dropping-but the truth is essential to our health.
Subjects: Medical care.; Medical errors.; Medical policy.; Public health.;
Available copies: 0 / Total copies: 1
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Fit cities : my quest to improve the world's health and wellness-- including yours / by Lee, Karen K.,author.;
Includes bibliographical references.In the arena of public health, this Canadian woman is an international superstar. In the early 2000s, she went to the US to join a team of "health detectives" for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Smoking was in decline, and so the US CDC's attention had turned to the next biggest causes of premature death: over-eating and under-exercising. Dr. Lee's zeal in seeking out the root causes-- in schools, restaurants, and environments that encourage a sedentary, calorie-packed way of life-- was matched by her inspired approach to finding solutions. She was next recruited by the City of New York, where she was instrumental in introducing Active Design, an initiative for creating opportunities for healthy living in everyday life that has helped reverse childhood obesity and lengthen life expectancies. Her influence has since spread around the world. Dr. Lee has always known that health education, public service announcements, and our individual struggles are not enough. The world around us needs to change to support us in taking steps (literally and figuratively) to save our own lives. Working with civic leaders, city planners, and architects, she has been a pioneer in addressing today's leading health problems, such as obesity, heart disease, strokes, cancers, and diabetes. Fit Cities is a riveting memoir of that work-- the story of how Dr. Lee and her many teams of brilliant collaborators uncovered, and set about eradicating, the causes of a pandemic of unhealthy living. And every step of the way, it offers invaluable advice on how we can all help ourselves to live healthier lives.
Subjects: Lee, Karen K.; Public health.; Health.; Medicine, Preventive.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Health for all : a doctor's prescription for a healthier Canada / by Philpott, Jane,1960-author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."From one of Canada's most respected and high-profile health professionals (and former federal Minister of Health), a timely, practical, ambitious, and deeply personal call for action on health that sets out the roadmap to our future well-being. Jane Philpott has spent her life learning what makes people sick and what keeps people well. She has witnessed miracles in modern medicine. She has also watched children die of starvation in a world that has plenty of food. With Health for All, she sounds a clarion call for a radical disruption in a health care system that is broken--but not beyond repair. The vision is rooted in a deep-seated commitment to health equity. Decades ago, a few visionary Canadian leaders put laws in place to ensure health care insurance for all. But the structures to deliver that care were never fully developed as envisioned. As a result, our health systems are not comprehensive or well-coordinated. In the wake of a pandemic, we risk it all falling apart. More than six million people have no family doctor, nor any other access to primary care. Emergency rooms are routinely closed. Exhausted health workers wonder if it will ever get better. Some say we should hand health care over to the private sector. But to abandon our commitment to publicly funded health care now would only lead to more expensive and less equitable care. Philpott outlines a different solution--an ambitious, once-in-a-generation reset of health systems with universal access to primary care teams. What sets this book apart is that it's more than a prescription for better medical care. Philpott looks at the big picture of health for all. This includes an intimate look at the personal roots of well-being: hope, belonging, meaning, and purpose. Then, through real-life stories, she examines the impact of the social determinants of health. Finally, she explains that none of this will happen without the political will to do the hard work of rebuilding a healthy society. The remedy we await is serious leadership to implement what we already know and to put the well-being of Canadians at the top of the agenda"--
Subjects: Medical policy; Public health;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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My Fight for Canadian Healthcare : A Thirty-Year Battle to Put Patients First. by Day, Brian.;
'My Fight for Canadian Healthcare' is Dr. Brian Days personal journey through a failing healthcare system that has deviated far from its intended purpose, ensnaring patients in long cycles of waiting and suffering. It lays bare the incongruity of Canadian governments holding fast to principles established six decades ago in the face of mounting evidence of patient harm and makes a powerful case for a complete rethink of how we deliver healthcare in the 21st century. Day lives in Vancouver, BC.Library Bound Incorporated
Subjects: BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Industries / Healthcare; MEDICAL / Health Care Delivery; MEDICAL / Health Policy; MEDICAL / Public Health;
Available copies: 0 / Total copies: 1
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The wisdom of plagues : lessons from 25 years of covering pandemics / by McNeil, Donald G.,Jr.,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."For a certain class of American's, Donald McNeil was a comforting voice when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out. He was the regular reporter on the New York Times's popular Daily podcast, and he was telling folks to prepare for the worst. A generation of NYT readers went out and stocked up on food and PPE stuff because of his clear advice. He'd covered public health for the Times for 25 years and understood what he was seeing out of China. THE WISDOM OF PLAGUES is his account of what he learned over a quarter-century of reporting on public health in over 60 countries: part-memoir, part history, and part activism. Many science reporters understand the basics of diseases--how a virus works, for example, or what goes into making a vaccine. But very few understand the psychology of how small outbreaks turn into pandemics: How everyone from hunters to farmers to guano-diggers gets exposed to animal diseases. How diseases spread through networks of similar people and by "mass-gathering" events. How surveillance fails. How countries respond slowly or even cover up outbreaks. Why people refuse to believe they're at risk, or why they reject protective measures like quarantine or vaccines. How wild rumors spring up and scare people away from common sense responses. How greedy makers of false remedies spread confusion. Why public health agencies fumble and let things spiral out of control. The Covid pandemic was the story McNeil had trained his whole life to cover. His experience and deep bench of sources let him make many accurate predictions in 2020 about the course that a deadly new respiratory virus in Wuhan, China, would take and how different countries would respond. By the time McNeil wrote his last Times stories about the Covid-19 pandemic he had not lost his compassion, but he had grown far more stone-hearted about how he thought governments should react. He had witnessed so many failures and read enough history to realize that while every epidemic is different, failure was the one constant. Again and again, containable outbreaks ballooned into catastrophes because weak leaders were mired in denial. Citizens refused to make even minor sacrifices for the common good and were encouraged in that by money-hungry entrepreneurs and power-hungry populists. Science was ignored, obvious truths were denied, and the innocent too often died. THE WISDOM OF PLAGUES is ultimately about what we can do to improve global health and be better prepared for the next pandemic, which is coming"--
Subjects: COVID-19 (Disease); Epidemiology.; Pandemics.; Public health surveillance.; Public health;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Crackdown : Surviving and Resisting the War on Drugs. by Mullins, Garth.;
Garth Mullins' experience as a heroin user - including dopesickness, incarceration and overdose - is an all-too-common story for those struggling with drug addiction. And for Garth, it was this revelation that propelled him to the forefront of drug user activism. 'Crackdown' explores Garth's relationship with opioids, and is a searing indictment of a broken system that is failing drug users and non-users alike. Mullins lives in Vancouver, BC.Library Bound Incorporated
Subjects: BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Personal Memoirs; MEDICAL / Public Health; SOCIAL SCIENCE / Criminology;
Available copies: 0 / Total copies: 1
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Extra life : a short history of living longer / by Johnson, Steven,1968-author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."As a species, humans have doubled their life expectancy in one hundred years. Medical breakthroughs, public health institutions, rising standards of living, and the other advances of modern life have given each person about 20,000 extra days on average. This book attempts to help the reader understand where that progress came from and what forces keep people alive longer. The author also considers how to avoid decreases in life expectancy as public health systems face unprecedented challenges, and what current technologies or interventions could reduce the impact of future crises"--
Subjects: Health services administration; Life expectancy.; Public health administration;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Pandemic spotlight : Canadian doctors at the front of the COVID-19 fight / by Hanomansing, Ian,author.;
Canadians who have followed the news about the COVID-19 pandemic will recognize the names of doctors Lisa Barrett, Isaac Bogoch, Zain Chagla, Sumon Chakrabarti, Susy Hota, Fatima Kakkar, Srinivas Murthy, Lynora Saxinger and Alexander Wong--nine remarkable Canadians who found themselves in the spotlight during a remarkably challenging year. While dealing with their own personal concerns about the worsening pandemic and their busy medical practices, the doctors profiled in Pandemic Spotlight volunteered their time and offered their expertise in hundreds of media interviews, providing calm, clear and independent analysis. Hanomansing talks to them about what inspired them to become doctors and what led them to specialize in infectious diseases and then take on this very public role. The doctors discuss the moment the pandemic became very real to them and speak candidly about what it was like when infections raged out of control in Italy and then New York City, leaving doctors at Canadian hospitals to wonder what might be next. And they explain the sense of duty they felt to step into the media glare, even as public anxiety and skepticism sometimes turned into hostility and social media made them easy to contact and, sometimes, easy targets. And for anyone who's been asked to offer their expertise to the media, they have advice on how to answer the call. There are a few silver linings in the COVID storm. One of them is how these doctors put science front and centre and became public symbols of trust and hope. As they prepare to return to their private careers, they respond to Hanomansing's invitation to reflect on lessons learned and their concerns about the next pandemic.
Subjects: Communication in public health; COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-; Medical personnel;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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What can I do? : my path from climate despair to action / by Fonda, Jane,1937-author.;
"In the fall of 2019, frustrated with the obvious inaction of politicians and inspired by Greta Thunberg, Naomi Klein, and student climate strikers, Jane Fonda moved to Washington, DC to lead weekly climate change demonstrations on Capitol Hill. On October 11, she launched Fire Drill Fridays (FDF), and has since led thousands of people in non-violent civil disobedience, risking arrest to protest for action. In her new book, Fonda weaves her deeply personal journey as an activist alongside interviews with leading climate scientists, and discussions of specific issues, such as water, migration, and human rights, to emphasize what is at stake. Most significantly, Fonda provides concrete solutions, and things the average person can do to combat the climate crisis in their community. No stranger to protest, Fonda's life has been famously shaped by activism. And now, on the eve of the next presidential election, she is once again galvanizing the public to take to the streets. Too many of us understand that our climate is in a crisis, and realize that a moral responsibility rests on our shoulders. 2019 saw atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases hit the highest level ever recorded in human history, and our window of opportunity to avoid disaster is quickly closing. We are facing a climate crisis, but we're also facing an empathy crisis, an inequality crisis. It isn't only earth's life-support systems that are unraveling. So too is our social fabric. This is going to take an all-out war on drilling and fracking and deregulation and racism and misogyny and colonialism and despair all at the same time"--
Subjects: Climatic changes; Greenhouse effect, Atmospheric; Public health;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The plague cycle : the unending war between humanity and infectious disease / by Kenny, Charles,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index.For four thousand years, the size and vitality of cities, economies, and empires were heavily determined by infection. Striking humanity in waves, the cycle of plagues set the tempo of civilizational growth and decline, since common response to the threat was exclusion-quarantining the sick or keeping them out. But the unprecedented hygiene and medical revolutions of the past two centuries have allowed humanity to free itself from the hold of epidemic cycles-resulting in an urbanized, globalized, and unimaginably wealthy world. However, our development has lately become precarious. Climate and population fluctuations and aspects of our prosperity such as global trade have left us more vulnerable than ever to newly emerging plagues. Greater global cooperation toward sustainable health is urgently required-such as the international efforts to harvest a Covid-19 vaccine-with millions of lives and trillions of dollars at stake. Written as colorful history, The Plague Cycle reveals the relationship between civilization, globalization, prosperity, and infectious disease over the past five millennia. It harnesses history, economics, and public health, and charts humanity's remarkable progress, providing a fascinating and timely look at the cyclical nature of infectious disease.
Subjects: COVID-19 (Disease); Communicable diseases; Public health; Globalization;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Results 1 to 10 of 118 |