Communities in Action

Communities in Action
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 583
Release: 2017-04-27
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309452961

In the United States, some populations suffer from far greater disparities in health than others. Those disparities are caused not only by fundamental differences in health status across segments of the population, but also because of inequities in factors that impact health status, so-called determinants of health. Only part of an individual's health status depends on his or her behavior and choice; community-wide problems like poverty, unemployment, poor education, inadequate housing, poor public transportation, interpersonal violence, and decaying neighborhoods also contribute to health inequities, as well as the historic and ongoing interplay of structures, policies, and norms that shape lives. When these factors are not optimal in a community, it does not mean they are intractable: such inequities can be mitigated by social policies that can shape health in powerful ways. Communities in Action: Pathways to Health Equity seeks to delineate the causes of and the solutions to health inequities in the United States. This report focuses on what communities can do to promote health equity, what actions are needed by the many and varied stakeholders that are part of communities or support them, as well as the root causes and structural barriers that need to be overcome.

Transitions and the Lifecourse

Transitions and the Lifecourse
Author: Amanda Grenier
Publisher: Policy Press
Total Pages: 253
Release: 2012
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1847426913

This book offers a unique perspective on ideas about late life as expressed in social policy and socio-cultural constructs of age with lived experience.

Ethnicity and the Dementias

Ethnicity and the Dementias
Author: Gwen Yeo
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 292
Release: 1996
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 9781560324379

First Published in 1996. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

The walk without limbs: Searching for indigenous health knowledge in a rural context in South Africa

The walk without limbs: Searching for indigenous health knowledge in a rural context in South Africa
Author: Gubela Mji
Publisher: AOSIS
Total Pages: 247
Release: 2019-12-12
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 1928523110

In a country as diverse as South Africa, sickness and health often mean different things to different people – so much so that the different health definitions and health belief models in the country seem to have a profound influence on the health-seeking behaviour of the people who are part of our vibrant, multicultural society. This book is concerned with the integration of indigenous health knowledge (IHK) into the current Western--orientated Primary Health Care (PHC) model. The first section of the book highlights the challenges facing the training of health professionals using a curriculum that is not drawing its knowledge base from the indigenous context and the people of that context. Such professionals will later recognise that they are walking without limbs in matters pertaining to health. The area that was chosen for conducting the research was KwaBomvana in Xhora (Elliotdale), Eastern Cape province, South Africa. The people who reside there are called AmaBomvana. The area where the Bomvana peoples reside is served by Madwaleni Hospital and eight surrounding clinics. Qualitative ethnographic, feminist methods of data collection supported the research done for Section 1 of the book. Section 2 comprises the translation and implementation of PhD study outcomes and had contributions from various researchers. In the critical research findings of the PhD study, older Xhosa women identify the inclusion of social determinants of health as vital to the health problems they managed within their homes. For them, each disease is linked to a social determinant of health, and the management of health problems includes the management of social determinants of health. For them, it is about the health of the home and not just about the management of disease. They believe that healthy homes make healthy villages, and that the prevention of the development of disease is related to the strengthening of the home. Health and illness should be seen within both physical and spiritual contexts; without health, there can be no progress in the home. When defining health, the older Xhosa women add three critical components to the WHO health definition, namely, food security, healthy children and families, and peace and security in their villages. Prof. Mji further proposes that these three elements should be included in the next revision of the WHO health definition because they are not only important for the Bomvana people where the research was conducted, but also for the rest of humanity. In light of the promise of National Health Insurance and the revitalisation of PHC, this book proposes that these two major national health policies should take cognisance of the IHK utilised by the older Xhosa women. In addtion to what this research implies, these policies should also take note of all IHK from the indigenous peoples of South Africa, Africa and the rest of the world, and that there should be a clear plan as to how the knowledge can be supported within a health care systems approach.

Stress and Cardiovascular Disease

Stress and Cardiovascular Disease
Author: Paul Hjemdahl
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 389
Release: 2011-10-01
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 184882419X

The main aim of this book is to evaluate the concept of stress and provide tools for physicians to identify patients who might benefit from stress management. This will incorporate a detailed description of the physiological and pathophysiological consequences of acute and chronic stress that might lead to cardiovascular disease. The book will aim to critically evaluate interventional research (behavioural and other therapies) and provide evidence based recommendations on how to manage stress in the cardiovascular patient. Our intentions are to define and highlight stress as an etiological factor for cardiovascular disease, and to describe an evidence based "tool box" that physicians may use to identify and manage patients in whom stress may be an important contributing factor for their disease and their risk of suffering cardiovascular complications.

Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples in the United States

Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples in the United States
Author: Julie Koppel Maldonado
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 178
Release: 2014-04-05
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3319052667

With a long history and deep connection to the Earth’s resources, indigenous peoples have an intimate understanding and ability to observe the impacts linked to climate change. Traditional ecological knowledge and tribal experience play a key role in developing future scientific solutions for adaptation to the impacts. The book explores climate-related issues for indigenous communities in the United States, including loss of traditional knowledge, forests and ecosystems, food security and traditional foods, as well as water, Arctic sea ice loss, permafrost thaw and relocation. The book also highlights how tribal communities and programs are responding to the changing environments. Fifty authors from tribal communities, academia, government agencies and NGOs contributed to the book. Previously published in Climatic Change, Volume 120, Issue 3, 2013.

Health Inequities in Canada

Health Inequities in Canada
Author: Olena Hankivsky
Publisher: UBC Press
Total Pages: 414
Release: 2011-05-28
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0774819782

There is a growing recognition that existing theories on, and approaches to, health inequities are limited in their ability to capture how these inequities are produced through changing, co-constituted, and intersecting effects of multiple forms of oppression. Intersectionality responds to this problem by considering the interactions and combined impacts of social locations and structural processes on the creation and perpetuation of inequities. It offers unique insights into, and possible solutions to, some of Canada’s most pressing health disparities. This volume brings together Canadian activists, community-based researchers, and scholars from a range of disciplines to apply interpretations of intersectionality to health and organizational governance cases. By addressing specific health issues, this book advances methodological applications of intersectionality in health research, policy, and practice. Most importantly, it demonstrates that health inequities cannot be understood or addressed without the interrogation of power and diverse social locations and structures that shape lives and experiences of health.

Indigenous Peoples' Food Systems

Indigenous Peoples' Food Systems
Author: Harriet V. Kuhnlein
Publisher: Fao
Total Pages: 396
Release: 2009
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN:

Today, globalisation and homogenisation have replaced local food cultures. The 12 case studies presented in this book show the wealth of knowledge in indigenous communities in diverse ecosystems, the richness of their food resources, the inherent strengths of the local traditional food systems, how people think about and use these foods, the influx of industrial and purchased food, and the circumstances of the nutrition transition in indigenous communities. The unique styles of conceptualising food systems and writing about them were preserved. Photographs and tables accompany each chapter.

Evidence-based Health Promotion

Evidence-based Health Promotion
Author: Ina Simnett
Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
Total Pages: 452
Release: 1999-03-12
Genre: Medical
ISBN:

This volume will challenge those involved with health promotion to think more broadly about what 'doing the right thing' and 'doing things right' mean, and to use this thinking to inform their practice. It is, therefore, essential reading for those who are involved in health promotion as part of their practice, health-promotion specialists, managers responsible for purchasing or providing services, and students.