'This pioneering analysis of the impact of devolution on the organisation of health care in the United Kingdom marks a double achievement. It illuminates both the politics of devolution and the politics of health care, as well as the relationship between the two. As such it should not only be of great interest to those concerned about the evolution of the NHS - and the potential for diversity within a common framework - but also makes a stimulating contribution to the wider, comparative health care literature.' Rudolf Klein, Emeritus Professor of Social Policy, Bath University 'In the face of simplistic notions about globalization, technological imperatives and interdependence, Prof. Scott Greer's new book offers a strong dose of political realism. How, in only a few years, could Britain's vaunted National Health Service - the presumed embodiment of social citizenship -diverge into four distinctive "national" health services? This book's thorough, politically astute research shows how local systems of party politics and policy advocacy are yielding quite different strategies for health policy in the United Kingdom. More than that, Greer's work offers a careful way of thinking about mature welfare states in the early 21st century. He invites us to appreciate how global policy debates arrive at local conclusions.' Hugh Heclo, Robinson Professor of Public Affairs, George Mason University

The rates of medical bullying, absences by LGBT+ professionals due to lack of safety in the workplace, and subsequent suicidality for LGBT+ youth adults are exponentially higher than for non-LGBT+ youth and adults. As a result, many LGBT+ patients and professionals are suffering needlessly, and many business leaders are unsure of what to do. This book solves that problem. Featuring real-life situations and scenarios, a glossary, and further resources, this book enables professionals in a variety of business roles to integrate foundational concepts into their everyday interactions with potential and current employees to create an overall medical workplace culture that nurtures a welcoming, inclusive, and affirming environment for all. This book can be utilized by independent readers, department teams, and entire medical corporations reading experiences. Setting out best practices and professional guidance for creating an LGBT+ inclusive medical workplace, this approachable and easy to follow book guides medical leaders and anyone working in a medical facility toward appropriate and proven ways to create safer working environments, update workplace policies, enhance hiring and staff retention protocols, and better support LGBT+ employees in the workplace as well as for LGBT+ patient experiences. The real-life scenarios are a unique feature of this book. While many offer information, this book is practical and requires active engagement with the material for the reader. The scenarios offer the reader the opportunity to try out the foundational knowledge they obtained in earlier chapters by giving real business place experiences that others have been challenged by. After reading the scenario, there are intentional pointed thought questions, which can be used for discussion if the book is read in groups or teams. This encourages teamwork and shared learning. Then, readers will receive guidance from America's Leading LGBT+ expert, who uses her 25+ years of experience to guide the reader as if they were receiving individualized guidance right from her to them!

A study of social assumptions, specific events, medical categories, distinct groups and ideas of control in health research. This book examines presumptions about gender, race and age with particular reference to the "biological clock" and notions of "civilized countries" and "primitive races." The volume is divided into three sections. The first section spells out the author's new theory of medicalism - a co-emergent process of health care which puts health-care consumers on an equal causal footing with health-care providers. The second section takes up each of the issues of age, sex and race in turn and looks at the particular consequences of these assumptions for specific health events. With age, fertility is the focus. With sex and race, the focus is on cancer. The third section deals with action both in terms of doing better research and making informed choices about health care.

Documenting the daily efforts of African Americans to protect their community against highly oppressive conditions, this ground-breaking volume chronicles the unique experiences of black women that place them at higher risk for morbidity and mortality - especially during pregnancy. Stress and Resilience: The Social Context of Reproduction in Central Harlem examines the processes through which economic circumstances, environmental issues, and social conditions create situations that expose African American women to stress and chronic strain. Detailing the individual and community assets and strategies used to address these conditions, this volume provides a model methodology for translating research into public health and social action. Based on interactive community partnered research, Stress and Resilience: The Social Context of Reproduction in Central Harlem Facilitates more exact hypotheses about the relationship between risk factors, protective factors and reproductive health; Furnishes a better understanding of chronic disease patterns and suggests more effective interventions to reduce rates of infant mortality; Incorporates the voices of the community and of women themselves through their own words and actions; Sheds light on epidemiologic research and intervention protocols; Examines the social context in which reproductive behaviors are practiced; Provides a holistic framework in which to understand infant mortality; And more. Filling a large gap in the literature on the social context of reproduction this important monograph offers indispensable information for public health researchers, program planners, anthropologists, sociologists, urban planners, medical providers, policy makers, and private funders.

Plagued by geographic isolation, poverty, and acute shortages of health professionals and hospital beds, the South was dubbed by Surgeon General Thomas Parran "the nation's number one health problem." The improvement of southern, rural, and black health would become a top priority of the U.S. Public Health Service during the Roosevelt and Truman administrations.

Karen Kruse Thomas details how NAACP lawsuits pushed southern states to equalize public services and facilities for blacks just as wartime shortages of health personnel and high rates of draft rejections generated broad support for health reform. Southern Democrats leveraged their power in Congress and used the war effort to call for federal aid to uplift the South. The language of regional uplift, Thomas contends, allowed southern liberals to aid blacks while remaining silent on race. Reformers embraced, at least initially, the notion of "deluxe Jim Crow"--support for health care that maintained segregation. Thomas argues that this strategy was, in certain respects, a success, building much-needed hospitals and training more black doctors.

By the 1950s, deluxe Jim Crow policy had helped to weaken the legal basis for segregation. Thomas traces this transformation at the national level and in North Carolina, where "deluxe Jim Crow reached its fullest potential." This dual focus allows her to examine the shifting alliances--between blacks and liberal whites, southerners and northerners, activists and doctors--that drove policy. "Deluxe Jim Crow" provides insight into a variety of historical debates, including the racial dimensions of state building, the nature of white southern liberalism, and the role of black professionals during the long civil rights movement.

Health communication research examines the role of communication in health professional/client relationships and in promoting patient adherence, the flow of information within and between health organizations, the design and effectiveness of health information for various audiences and the planning and evaluation of health care policy. Other important areas treated in this book are cultural and social factors influencing health communication, ethical issues effecting communication, and education in communication within medical schools. Medical students, physicians, policy makers, students and faculty in communications and sociology, as well as social services professionals should find this reference an important tool.

Communications research in aviation is widely regarded by many in the healthcare community as the 'gold standard' to emulate. Yet healthcare and aviation differ in many ways, as do the vital communications shared among members of clinical teams. Aviation team communication should, then, be understood in terms of what lessons will benefit those who work in healthcare. In Improving Healthcare Team Communication, renowned experts provide insights from 'sharp end' operator research in high-hazard sectors that shed light on the performance of cognitive tasks including resource availability assessment, allocation, anticipation, prediction, trade-off decisions, speculation and negotiation. The book reports on recent field research to address what is known, and what needs to be learned, about team communication among operators. Students, clinicians and healthcare managers can find answers in it to the questions they face daily. How can healthcare information be better shared? What can we expect from its improvement, and how do we get there? Lessons learned from team communication research and experience in aviation and healthcare will point the way to improved patient safety.

Taking a different approach to biobanks - genetic databases that combine genetic information derived from blood samples with personal data about environment, medical history, lifestyle or genealogy, this book draws attention to their political and governance implications. It argues that for biobanks to be created, shaped, maintained, and to operate properly, a number of interrelated conditions need to exist, from legal environment to funding mechanisms and social acceptance.

The book takes a comparative focus, with chapters on biobanks in Iceland, Estonia, Scandinavia, France, US, Japan, UK, Germany, Australia and Israel, and is divided into three parts which:

• introduce the conceptual framework that underpins the volume
• focus on biobanks as a challenge for governance
• emphasize biobanks as a tool and site for governance.

This groundbreaking book makes clear that biobanks are a phenomenon that cannot be disconnected from considerations of power, politics, and the reshaping of current practices in governance. It will be a valuable read for scholars and students of genetics, bioethics, risk, public health and the sociology of health and illness.

A unique, pathbreaking collection that provides the first, detailed and comprehensive analysis of the implications of new health technologies for society, the delivery of health care, and the very meaning of health itself. It is based on new, critical social science research integrated according to core themes, making it accessible and engaging. It will be of especial value to students and researchers in Social Science, Health Studies and medical schools.

We are still only beginning to understand the increasingly complex set of interdependencies among gender, health, and globalization. "Globalization, Women, and Health in the 21st Century" brings together a diverse group of distinguished scholars and activists to explore the new risks and freedoms for men and women in a global society and their health determinants. They map the gendered impact of these processes and present a health landscape that goes beyond nation states into trans-border flows of capital, people, goods, and services. Each chapter begins with a global analysis of specific trends followed by "in perspective" pieces by authors from contrasting disciplines and geographies. Given rapid changes in global society through globalization, this book serves as an important resource to reiterate the place of health and gender at the forefront of discussion.

Clinical Decision Support and Beyond: Progress and Opportunities in Knowledge-Enhanced Health and Healthcare, now in its third edition, discusses the underpinnings of effective, reliable, and easy-to-use clinical decision support systems at the point of care as a productive way of managing the flood of data, knowledge, and misinformation when providing patient care. Incorporating CDS into electronic health record systems has been underway for decades; however its complexities, costs, and user resistance have lagged its potential. Thus it is of utmost importance to understand the process in detail, to take full advantage of its capabilities. The book expands and updates the content of the previous edition, and discusses topics such as integration of CDS into workflow, context-driven anticipation of needs for CDS, new forms of CDS derived from data analytics, precision medicine, population health, integration of personal monitoring, and patient-facing CDS. In addition, it discusses population health management, public health CDS and CDS to help reduce health disparities. It is a valuable resource for clinicians, practitioners, students and members of medical and biomedical fields who are interested to learn more about the potential of clinical decision support to improve health and wellness and the quality of health care.

Health information about patients is critical; currently, health records are saved in databases controlled by individual users, organizations, or large groups of organizations. As there are many malicious users, this information is not shared with other organizations due to security issues and the chance of the data being modified or tampered with. Blockchain can be used to securely exchange healthcare data, which can be accessed by organizations sharing the same network, allowing doctors/practitioners to provide better care for patients. The key properties of decentralization, such as immutability and transparency, improve healthcare interoperability. This book brings forth the prospects and research trends of Blockchain in healthcare, so that Researchers, Database professionals, Academia, and Healthcare professionals across the world can know/use the concept of Blockchain in healthcare. The book provides the fundamental and technical details of Blockchain, the applications of Blockchain in healthcare, hands-on chapters for graduate/postgraduate/doctoral students/healthcare professionals to secure healthcare data of patients, and research challenges and future work directions for researchers in healthcare.

Learn how to ensure quality and safety for vulnerable older adults Transitional care is crucial to older adults with complex care needs who are moving between different locations or different levels of care. Charting a Course for High Quality Care Transitions addresses this problem by providing leading experts and leaders in the field discussing practical strategies that ensure care quality and safety for transitioning vulnerable older adults. This helpful resource comprehensively discusses current research, quality improvement, risk targeting, risk identification, patterns of care, care coordination, and performance assessment. Lowering the inherent risks for adverse events when moving patients can be challenging. Numerous unforeseen variables such as possible mismanagement of medication or staff shortages can often jeopardize patient safety. Charting a Course for High Quality Care Transitions offers practical approaches to address several of the main challenges encountered by health professionals. This book focuses on various ways to provide the highest quality patient-centered care through advancements in research, practice, and data measurement. This informative text is extensively referenced and contains numerous tables to clarify and illustrate important data. Topics in Charting a Course for High Quality Care Transitions include: a semantic framework for overcoming quality improvement issues stemming from inconsistent use of terms a tool for home health agencies to identify home health care patients at risk for hospital readmission medical and social factors that contribute to poor quality care transitions a successful Advanced Practice Nurse transitional care model that can improve outcomes to cognitively impaired older adults unrecognized needs of older adults living in residential care facilities patient-centered performance measurement early results of the Reducing Acute Care Hospitalization National Demonstration Collaborative gaps in research that need to be addressed in the future Charting a Course for High Quality Care Transitions is an important resource for home care professionals, hospital discharge planners, public health nurses, geriatric health services researchers, and health care professionals of all types.

Bayesian analyses have made important inroads in modern clinical research due, in part, to the incorporation of the traditional tools of noninformative priors as well as the modern innovations of adaptive randomization and predictive power. Presenting an introductory perspective to modern Bayesian procedures, Elementary Bayesian Biostatistics explores Bayesian principles and illustrates their application to healthcare research. Building on the basics of classic biostatistics and algebra, this easy-to-read book provides a clear overview of the subject. It focuses on the history and mathematical foundation of Bayesian procedures, before discussing their implementation in healthcare research from first principles. The author also elaborates on the current controversies between Bayesian and frequentist biostatisticians. The book concludes with recommendations for Bayesians to improve their standing in the clinical trials community. Calculus derivations are relegated to the appendices so as not to overly complicate the main text. As Bayesian methods gain more acceptance in healthcare, it is necessary for clinical scientists to understand Bayesian principles. Applying Bayesian analyses to modern healthcare research issues, this lucid introduction helps readers make the correct choices in the development of clinical research programs.

"Intersex" is the condition whereby an individual is born with biological features that are simultaneously perceived as male and female. Ranging from the ambiguous genitalia of the true 'hermaphrodite' to the 'mildly or internally intersexed', the condition may be as common as cleft palate. Like cleft palate, it is hidden and surgically altered, but for very different reasons. This important book draws heavily on the personal testimony of intersexed individuals, their loved ones, and medical careers. The impact of early sex-assignment surgery on an individual's later life is examined within the context of ethical and clinical questions. Harper challenges the conventional and radical 'treatment' of intersexuality through non-consensual infant sex-assignment surgery. In doing so she exposes powerful myths, taboos, and constructions of gender - the perfect phallus, a bi-polar model of gender and the infallibility of medical decisions. Handling sensitive material with care, this book deepens our understanding of a condition that has itself only been medically understood in recent years.

Families of children with special health needs frequently cite difficulties in their communications with physicians and other medical professionals. Indeed, parents of high-risk, chronically ill, and disabled infants often regard interactions with health care providers as one of the most stressful parts of their early experiences with their children.

This volume was designed to present a variety of medical education approaches used to overcome this problem. After providing an overview of some of the difficulties faced by physicians and families of children with special health needs in their interactions with one another, the volume examines a number of useful medical education models. The models and viewpoints presented include those of physicians, early intervention professionals, professionals with backgrounds in education, psychology, and sociology, and parents. This volume is invaluable to those involved in designing and evaluating medical education approaches, and those developing public policy for children and the family.

The success of healthcare decision-making lies in whether healthcare staff, patients, and healthcare organization managers can comprehensively understand the choices and consider future implications to make the best decision possible. Multiple-criteria decision making (MCDM), including multiple rule-based decision making (MRDM), multiple-objective decision making (MODM), and multiple-attribute decision making (MADM), is used by clinical decision-makers to analyze healthcare issues from various perspectives. In practical health care cases, semi-structured and unstructured decision-making issues involve multiple criteria (or goals) that may conflict with each other. Thus, the use of MCDM is a promising source of practical solutions for such problems. MCDM methods mainly include the three parts: data process, evaluation and selection, and planning and design. Data process focuses on analyzing and identifying healthcare management issues and data features for solving practical cases. Evaluation and selection focus on evaluating the performance of each solution for healthcare management, and these methods can be used to support decision-making and help organizations choose the best solution for practical healthcare management cases. Finally, planning and design focus on analyzing and designing the goals of healthcare management applications, which can be modelled as a minimizing or maximizing problem for finding the optimal solutions. Furthermore, these methods can explore the relationship structure construction among criteria between various related issues arising from healthcare.

By chronicling the transformations of hospitals from houses of mercy to tools for confinement, from dwellings of rehabilitation to spaces for clinical teaching and research, from rooms for birthing and dying to institutions of science and technology, this book provides a historical approach to understanding of today's hospitals. The story is told in a dozen episodes which illustrate hospitals in particular times and places, covering important themes and developments in the history of medicine and therapeutics, from ancient Greece to the era of AIDS. This book furnishes a unique insight into the world of meanings and emotions associated with hospital life and patienthood by including narratives by both patients and care givers. By conceiving of hospitals as houses of order capable of taming the chaos associated with suffering, illness, and death, we can better understand the significance of their ritualized routines and rules. From their beginnings, hospitals were places of spiritual and physical recovery. They should continue to respond to all human needs. As traditional testimonials to human empathy and benevolence, hospitals must endure as spaces of healing.

Noted experts provide practical, effective strategies to meet global health challenges International Social Health Care Policy, Program, and Studies presents a collection of papers drawn from the Ninth Doris Siegel Memorial Fund Colloquium that focuses on social work and international health issues, emphasizing an international exchange and cooperation as a crucial facet of meeting global health challenges. Honoring the memory and spirit of social work pioneer Doris Siegel for her accomplishments and advocacy on behalf of social-health issues, this fine selection of scholarly papers explores ideas and strategies from around the world which offer greater opportunity for success for diverse social work and health care problems. Internationally recognized practitioners and academics offer research and case studies illustrating approaches, programs, and policies that any practitioner or policymaker may find helpful. International Social Health Care Policy, Program, and Studies closely examines the common ground in social health care problems shared by various countries worldwide. Issues such as the effects of terrorism, academic-practice partnerships in practice research, and the international exchange program are explored, with insightful discussions that explain in which directions to best channel social and health care energies and resources. Helpful figures and tables further explain concepts and research. Topics in International Social Health Care Policy, Program, and Studies include: Strength-focused and Meaning-oriented Approach to Resilience and Transformation (SMART) as a model of crisis intervention that uses a holistic view of health outpatient commitment as a delivery system assisted conception and social work needs in the United Kingdom a study on the psychological distress between elderly Israeli residents and immigrant family caregivers impact of prolonged terrorist attacks on children and adolescents in Israel stress experienced by social workers working with terror victims integration of social workers into hospital disaster response teams in Australia academic practice research partnerships for health social workers evaluation of the outcomes from the Mount Sinai Social Work Leadership Enhancement Program discussion of the lessons learned from the 75-year history of health social work in Melbourne, Australia and more! International Social Health Care Policy, Program, and Studies is horizon-expanding reading that is perfect for social workers dealing with a global community, social work libraries, educators, students, and libraries of all types.

The US political system has come to depend upon money too much. The US health care industry spends the most on political lobbying among all the 13 industrial sectors in the US economy. The government regulatory agencies at both federal and state levels have been "captured" by the health industry interest groups meaning that the regulatory agencies respond to the interests of the industry but not those of citizens. This book employs a broad theoretical framework of crony capitalism to understand US health care system dysfunction. This framework has not been applied before in any serious manner to understand the shortcomings in the US health care system. Specifically, the book examines the role of seven key players using this framework - politicians/interest groups, pharmaceutical companies, private health insurers, hospitals/hospital networks, physicians, medical device manufacturers, and the American public. Crony capitalism is a destructive force and is rampant in US health care system, causing much waste, inefficiencies, and malaise in the system. Current efforts and initiatives, such as patient-centered medical homes and precision medicine, for improving/reforming the system are of mere academic interest and tantamount to taking aspirin to treat cancer. They do not even pretend to address the root cause of the problem, namely, crony capitalism. Offering prescriptions to fix the U.S. health care system based on a comprehensive diagnosis of the dysfunction, this book will be of interest to researchers, academics, policymakers, and students in the fields of health care management, public and non-profit management, health policy, administration, and economics, and political science.

This book presents the refereed proceedings of the Fourth Italian Forum on Ambient Assisted Living (AAL), held in Ancona, Italy, in October 2013. A wide range of issues are covered and new technological developments are described which will support the autonomy and independence of individuals with special needs through an innovative and integrated approach, designed to respond to the socio-economic challenges of an aging population. Topics addressed include: health and well-being, prevention and rehabilitation and support for care providers; active aging and its social implications; services for the frail elderly with health problems and their families; nutrition; ICT platforms/technologies for the benefit of the elderly; home automation and control technologies (autonomy, safety and energy saving); smart cities and smart communities; telemedicine, telerehabilitation, and telecare; mobility, participation and social inclusion; games and fun for the elderly; building design; social housing; interface design and interaction (accessibility, acceptance); social policies to encourage and support active aging; business models, market analysis and development of sustainable financing and business and ethics, privacy and data protection. Many experimental validations based on user trials and usability testing are presented and discussed. The knowledge and insights provided in this book will help researchers and others involved in AAL to understand relevant societal trends, novel technological developments and pressing challenges.

Health care in the United States at the end of the 20th century occupies a completely different place in the economy, in the public consciousness, and in its impact on government, than it did at the beginning of the century, or even in the early years of the Clinton Administration. Health care is now a multi-billion dollar industry; one that consumes more than 15 percent of the nation's GNP. Citizens now regard health care as essential to the quality of their lives, and a steady stream of new medications and procedures point to ways to extend the lives of our aging population and restore those injured on or off the job. At the same time, the changing patterns of health care have stirred a national debate over the growth of managed care and the role that government can play in providing solid health care standards--a medical safety net--within tightening budgetary restraints. This book explores the role of the federal government in health care policy development from the years of the Founding Fathers to the present.

Kronenfeld reviews the key features of the American health care system, its infrastructure, and federal legislative process and outcomes in the health care arena. The current situation in health care is examined, with particular attention given to the attempt at major reform in the first Clinton administration, and to the modest changes that were ultimately passed. She closes with an examination of the future of health care and the role of government, emphasizing how current health care issues and concerns may set the stage for a changed federal role in funding and delivery of health care services in the next century. This comprehensive examination of the role of government in the health care system will be of great interest to students and researchers of public policy and the social aspects of American health care.