Showing titles in History & Commentary

The prior record for vaccine development and distribution was approximately four-and-a-half years. Operation Warp Speed got the COVID-19 vaccine to the American people in less than ten months. Operation Warp Speed did not happen by accident. It was the result of exceptional leadership, explicit strategy, and unprecedented teamwork. Author Paul Mango, one of the key leaders of Operation Warp Speed and the former deputy chief of US Health and Human Services, chronicles the challenges of developing the vaccine.

The Fourth History of Man continues with virus infections where The Third History of Man left off: hashing out those specks of genetic schmutz, covering the R-naught of those naughty infectious scoundrels. Some big hitters will be considered, from polio and the famous celebrities that had it, through 50 shades of hepatitis, rabies and the hair of the dog, and the monkey business of HIV and AIDS. Leaving viruses, we’ll delve into a study of parasites, including the parasite of all parasites, Sigourney Weaver’s alien.

Medical historian Sally Sheard reveals the heroic characters and incredible innovations that have shaped our NHS. On 5th July 1948, for the first time anywhere in the world, healthcare in Britain became free for all. Sally Sheard looks at the highs and lows that followed the launch of the National Health Service - and describes what life was like before it. Drawing on unique archive recordings of staff, patients and politicians, including visionary NHS founders William Beveridge and Aneurin Bevan, she tells the stories behind 20 key moments in the history of the NHS.

The inspiring stories of 6 people who changed history. Contents: Edward Jenner, the man who fought the terrible disease, smallpox Florence Nightingale, the nurse known as ‘the lady with the lamp’ Elizabeth Garrett, England’s first female doctor Carl Jung, the doctor who wanted to...

A History of the Present Illness takes listeners into overlooked lives in the neighborhoods, hospitals, and nursing homes of San Francisco, offering a deeply humane and incisive portrait of health and illness in American today....In the tradition of Oliver Sacks and Abraham Verghese, Aronson's writing is based on personal experience and addresses topics of current social relevance. Masterfully told, A History of the Present Illness explores the role of stories in medicine and creates a world pulsating with life, speaking truths about what makes us human.

The End of the Beginning is a remarkable history of cancer treatment and the evolution of our understanding of its dynamic interplay with the immune system. Through Michael Kinch’s personal experience as a cancer researcher at Washington University and the head of the oncology program at a leading biotechnology company, we witness the incredible accumulation of breakthrough science and its rapid translation into life-saving technologies that have begun to dramatically increase the quality and quantity of life for cancer patients.

The second-century Greek physician Galen—the most famous doctor in antiquity after Hippocrates—is a central figure in Western medicine. A talented doctor, surgeon, writer, philosopher, teacher, pharmacologist, and inventor, Galen attended the court of Marcus Aurelius, living through outbreaks of plague that devastated the Roman Empire. He also served as a physician for professional gladiators. In writings that provided the foundation of Western medicine up to the nineteenth century, Galen created a unified account of health and disease.

Pandemics have afflicted human civilizations throughout history, yet these health crises have also led to progress in medicine and society that improved people’s lives. History shows that scientific innovation often proceeds from the collaboration of researchers across disciplines, nations, and institutions.

The Right to Pain Relief and Other Deep Roots of the Opioid Epidemic offers a new lens through which to view the opioid epidemic as a consequence of serious misunderstandings of both opioids and pain. Based on their extensive research and experience with chronic pain care, science, ethics, and policy, the authors look beyond the usual villains—pharmaceutical companies and pharmacotherapy distributors—to examine the ethical and scientific concepts about pain that made the opioid epidemic possible.

Not too long ago, there was no coming back from death. But now, with revolutionary medical advances, death has become just another serious complication. As a young medical student, Dr. David Casarett was inspired by the story of a two-year-old girl named Michelle Funk. Michelle fell into a creek and was underwater for over an hour. When she was found she wasn't breathing, and her pupils were fixed and dilated. That drowning should have been fatal. But after three hours of persistent work, a team of doctors and nurses was able to bring her back.

No Centro Hospitalar Psiquiátrico de Barbacena, conhecido apenas por Colônia, ocorreu uma das maiores barbáries da história do Brasil. O centro recebia diariamente, além de pacientes com diagnóstico de doença mental, homossexuais, prostitutas, epiléticos, mães solteiras, meninas problemáticas, mulheres engravidadas pelos patrões, moças que haviam perdido a virgindade antes do casamento, mendigos, alcoólatras, melancólicos, tímidos e todo tipo de gente considerada fora dos padrões sociais.

A Family History of Illness is a gritty historical memoir that examines the body's immune system and microbial composition as well as the biological and cultural origins of memory and history, offering a startling, fresh way to view the role of history in understanding our physical selves.

Welcome to a transformative guide designed exclusively for women. This is your empowering resource to navigate heart health with clarity and confidence.

“An important chronicle of how stigma, inertia, and ignorance hamper our mental health system—a vital read for understanding both the history and the future of addiction care at a pivotal moment for our nation’s health.”—Carl Erik Fisher, MD, author of The Urge: Our Story of Addiction...

Now more than 133 million Americans live with chronic illness, accounting for nearly three-quarters of all health care dollars, and untold pain and disability. There has been an alarming rise in illnesses that defy diagnosis through clinical tests or have no known cure. Millions of people, especially women, with illnesses such as irritable bowel syndrome, chronic pain, and chronic fatigue syndrome face skepticism from physicians and the public alike.

When Jesus sent 70 disciples on ahead of him, part of their mission was to heal the sick. In fact, they were supposed to heal the sick before they preached the Gospel. Best-selling author Mike Aquilina calls this command the healing imperative. And it's an imperative that ushered in the world of modern medicine. In The Healing Imperative: The Early Church and the Invention of Medicine as We Know It, Aquilina reconstructs the fascinating history of a uniquely Christian institution: the hospital.

Twenty years ago the most common cause of death for medical humanitarians and other aid workers was traffic accidents; today it is violent attacks. And the death of each doctor, nurse, paramedic, midwife, and vaccinator is multiplied untold times in the vulnerable populations deprived of their care. In a 2005 report, the ICRC found that for every soldier killed in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, more than 60 civilians died due to loss of immunizations and other basic health services.

In the 16th century, when explorers travelled deep into the jungles of South America in search of gold and spices, they brought back many colourful tales of their adventures. None of these tales was more astonishing, or caused more concern, than that of the mystical properties of the substance with which the natives anointed their darts and arrows.

Christian W. McMillen provides a concise yet comprehensive account of pandemics throughout human history, illustrating how pandemic disease has shaped history and, at the same time, social behavior has influenced pandemic disease.

Le docteur François Marquis, intensiviste bien connu du public, raconte son expérience de la pandémie. Écrit au « je », son livre nous plonge au coeur du quotidien dans l’unité des soins intensifs d’un hôpital universitaire, avec ses victoires, ses défaites, ses erreurs et ses bons coups. Ce récit d’une grande humilité, à la fois franc et nuancé, nous permet de mieux mesurer les enjeux de société soulevés par l’épreuve que nous traversons collectivement depuis plus d’un an.