This book presents some of the most recent research results on the applications of computational intelligence in healthcare. The contents include: information model for management of clinical content; state-based model for management of type II diabetes; case-based reasoning in medicine; assessing the quality of care in AI environment; electronic medical record to examine physician decisions; multi-agent systems for the management of community healthcare; assistive wheelchair navigation; and more.

Blockchain technology (BT) is quietly transforming the world, from financial infrastructure, to the internet-of-things, to healthcare applications. With increasing penetration of BT into various areas of our daily lives, the need arises for better awareness and greater knowledge about the capabilities, benefits, risks, and alternatives to distributed ledger applications. It is hoped that current book will be one of the pioneering collections focusing on blockchain implementations in the area of healthcare, with specific aim to present content in an easy-to-understand and readily accessible way for typical end-users of blockchain-based applications. There are important areas within the fabric of modern healthcare that stand to benefit from implementations of BT. These areas include electronic medical records, quality control, patient safety, finance, device tracking, biostamping/biocertification, redundant storage of critical data, health and liability insurance, medication utilization tracking (including opioid and antibiotic misuse), financial transactions, academics/education, asset tokenization, public health and pandemics, healthcare provider credentialing, and many other potential applications. The ultimate goal of the proposed book would be to provide an integrative, easy-to-understand, and comprehensive picture of the current state of blockchain use in healthcare while actively engaging the reader in a forward-looking, exploratory approach toward future developments in this space. To accomplish this goal, an expert panel of contributors has been assembled, featuring scholars from top global universities and think-tanks.

Discover how gay men 's health care can be improved Smearing the Queer: Medical Bias in the Health Care of Gay Men explores how social prejudices embedded in scientific research and practice often act as a detriment to gay men 's health. This book provides an agenda for addressing heterosexism in the health sciences and in medical care while broadening approaches to gay male wellness beyond the limited scope of HIV infection. This groundbreaking book explore a number of neglected concerns affecting the sexual health of gay men, calling for the recognition of their scientific, political, and cultural significance. In Smearing the Queer, gay men, HIV prevention workers, health care providers, mental health professionals, policymakers, researchers, and instructors in related fields will appreciate the in-depth examination of such issues as: research and development on rectal microbicides why many gay men should be receiving periodic anal Pap smears to screen for anorectal cancer an in-depth critique of the problematic diagnosis of "Gay Bowel Syndrome" gay men 's use of the Reality Female Condom for anal sex Viagara 's impact on gay men 's sexual cultures, erectile dysfunction, and recreational drug use a broad-based advocacy agenda for improving relations between gay men and the health sciences the politics surrounding gay men 's restricted access to new and prospective safer sex technologies Smearing the Queer challenges heterosexist bias within the health care delivery and health sciences research and calls for the development of public policy initiatives that address gay men 's wellness in more sophisticated and complex ways. This is the only publication that provides in-depth social, cultural, and political analysis of the topics of Gay Bowel Syndrome, gay men 's use of the female condom, rectal microbicides, and anal Pap smears while examining the social forces that direct scientific research under the guise of objectivity.

Why some patients wait longer than others remains an important question. This book is a reference for health services researchers looking for statistical tools with which to study waiting times. The book offers detailed coverage of statistical concepts and methods for the analysis and interpretation of waiting-time data. It provides analysis from health services research perspective, rather than operations management, and contains a collection of examples.

The book sets out to inform a broad range of professionals working in medicine and healthcare about how creative thinking and design concepts can be used to innovate in providing an enhanced patient experience. It outlines these concepts as a primary means to identify, clarify and resolve some of the process improvement and enhancement challenges in healthcare delivery. It demonstrates by example how such challenges can be addressed, drawing on case examples from healthcare and other industries, and from the authors’ own experiences as innovators and educators. It emphasizes the value of learning in action. For the reader who already has a leaning towards novel approaches to addressing healthcare delivery challenges, it provides guidance on harnessing team inputs and engaging with a network of contributors. It is an ideal resource for all working in medicine and healthcare, from managers, nurses, doctors, administrators, executives, and allied health professionals to medical engineers, medical physicists, medical scientists and medical product developers. Features Provides a unique framework to conceptualise innovation in healthcare and medicine. Authored by an award-winning medical scientist and an established business school Professor who have proven track-records with innovation, in education settings and as entrepreneurs. Presents a clear interdisciplinary approach, complemented with practical case studies set in the context of the challenges facing healthcare delivery in the 21st century. Dr. Barry McMahon has a national and international reputation as an Academic Medical Physicist in the fields of novel physiological measurement and medical device innovation and design. He is the co- inventor of the Functional Lumen Imaging Probe (FLIP) technique later commercialised as EndoFLIP™. He was the Director of the Innovation Academy at Trinity College Dublin from 2012 to 2017. Since 2020 he is advising Children’s Health Ireland on innovation practice. In 2021, he retired as Chief Physicist/Clinical Engineer at Tallaght Hospital, Ireland and currently runs his own innovation-consulting group Electric Mindset Ltd. Dr. Paul Coughlan is Professor in Operations Management and Co-Director of Faculty at Trinity Business School, Trinity College Dublin. His research explores collaborative strategic improvement of operations through network action learning. He was the Director of the Innovation Academy at Trinity College Dublin from 2010 to 2012. He is a founding director of a research-based spin-out venture, Easy Hydro Ltd.

"Why Is Changing Health Care So Hard?"

In this provocative and much-needed book, health care expert Dr. Donald Berwick shares eleven of his most compelling speeches. These unforgettable speeches (which were delivered at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement's annual National Forum on Quality Improvement in Health Care from 1992 to 2002) dramatically show that we need to create a new system that guarantees that every patient has the benefit of care drawn from the best scientific knowledge available. No mere diatribe, Berwick's vision for change includes practical suggestions and tools that can truly transform our broken system and puts the patient at the center of the health care system.

"In this vibrant book, Don Berwick speaks about one of the most vexing issues of our time with compelling competence, penetrating clarity, relentless honesty, and heart-warming humor. In an era when so many public voices lack these qualities, Berwick gives us reason to hope that our most difficult social problems have solutions that are within reach. We are the solution, of course-if we are willing to emulate the intellectual and moral courage modeled by leaders like Don Berwick."
-Parker J. Palmer, author, The Courage to Teach and Let Your Life Speak

"[Berwick's] target is a health care system that has evolved primarily to serve the needs and interests of those who work in the system-doctors, nurses, administrators, payors, insurers-rather than the needs and interests of patients."
-from the Introduction by Frank Davidoff

Whether you're taking the CPHIMS exam or simply want the most current and comprehensive overview in healthcare information and management systems today, this completely revised and updated fourth edition has it all. But for those preparing for the CPHIMS exam, this book is also an ideal study partner. The content reflects the outline of exam topics covering healthcare and technology environments; clinical informatics; analysis, design, selection, implementation, support, maintenance, testing, evaluation, privacy and security; and management and leadership. Candidates can challenge themselves with the sample multiple-choice questions given at the end of the book. The benefits of CPHIMS certification are broad and far-reaching. Certification is a process that is embraced in many industries, including healthcare information and technology. CPHIMS is recognized as the 'gold standard' in healthcare IT because it is developed by HIMSS, has a global focus and is valued by clinicians and non-clinicians, management and staff positions and technical and nontechnical individuals. Certification, specifically CPHIMS certification, provides a means by which employers can evaluate potential new hires, analyze job performance, evaluate employees, market IT services and motivate employees to enhance their skills and knowledge. Certification also provides employers with the evidence that the certificate holders have demonstrated an established level of job-related knowledge, skills and abilities and are competent practitioners of healthcare IT.

Health and the American Indian discusses contemporary health and social concerns in American Indian communities and offers recommendations for prevention, treatment, and future research. You?ll benefit from recent research that examines topics relating to physical and mental health, such as health care, gambling, historical trauma response, child welfare, and Native American involvement in the Human Genome Diversity Project. In Health and the American Indian, you?ll find cutting-edge information about various concerns in American Indian society that will assist you in offering culturally sensitive services to clients. Using in-depth studies and statistics to highlight issues facing Native Americans, this book provides you with an understanding of American Indian views on family, health, and being Native American. With Health and the American Indian, you?ll find suggestions and methods to sharpen your service skills, including: exploring differences in the historical trauma response between men and women to effectively treat both groups investigating the positive and negative effects that gambling has had on members of the community by using Grounded Theory combating problems related to gambling by redistributing a percentage of gaming income towards gaming abuse prevention and treatment programs, traditional community activities, and child care participating in continuing education or in-service training on cultural issues and understanding a client's cultural background in order to better help clients utilize the benefits of the Indian Child Welfare Act using the Family Systems approach along with community health representatives in health care interventions to provide better health care for Native AmericansExploring the topic of genetic engineering, Health and the American Indian discusses the Human Genome Diversity Project, gene patents, and how Native Americans who supply genetic material are being exploited and see no compensation for their assistance. Examining how exploitation and fear stand in the way of better physical and mental well-being, Health and the American Indian offers you methods and suggestions to help prevent and improve existing health issues in Native American communities.

At a time of increasing demands on budgets, governments around the world are seeking to reduce health expenditure and introduce market-oriented reforms to the health sector. This is leading to profound shifts in the relationship between the state and the individual, as policy makers dismantle the welfare state and move towards a user-pays sytem.Health Policy in the Market State offers an overview of health policy in Australia, locating it within the broader context of power and interests analysis and shifts in government policy and public sector restructuring. It outlines the key issues in current health policy and assesses the strengths and weaknesses of specific policies and programs.Contributors include Ian Anderson and Maggie Brady, Mary Draper, Stephen Duckett, Liz Eckerman, Sophie Hill, Sharon Moore, Michael Muetzelfeldt, Janine Smith and Beth Wilson.Health Policy in the Market State is a valuable overview for students, as well as a comprehensive reference for health professionals and policy-makers.

This book challenges readers to rethink rural health ethics. Traditional approaches to health ethics are often urban-centric, making implicit assumptions about how values and norms apply in health care practice, and as such may fail to take into account the complexity, depth, richness, and diversity of the rural context. There are ethically relevant differences between rural health practice and rural health services delivery and urban practice and delivery that go beyond the stereotypes associated with rural life and rural health services. This book examines key values in the rural context that have not been fully explored or taken into account when we examine health ethics issues, including the values of community and place, and a need to "revalue" relationships. It also advocates for a greater attention to meso and macro level analysis in rural health ethics as being critical to ethical analysis of rural health care. This book is essential reading for those involved in health ethics, rural health policy and governance, and for rural health providers.

This book examines how Botswana overcame the legacies of exceptional resource deficiency, colonial neglect and a harsh physical environment to transform itself from one of the poorest nations of the world to a middle income economy with significant reductions in people's poverty. It reviews the interactions of economic, social and institutional policies and how these reinforced one another to produce the poverty outcomes that they did from the initial socio-economic conditions. In particular it illustrates how the chosen development strategies consistently tied social and economic policies to achieve, on the one hand, re-distribution, protection and reproduction and, on the other, investment in production and human capabilities. The substantive areas covered include trends in economic development strategies and outcome; social policies and strategies and their impact on poverty and productive capacity; income and wealth distribution; the role of organized interest groups in policy development; and institutional development, state capacity and politics.

This book unpacks policy and politics for health, equity, and wellbeing. With a critical realist lens, the book provides a methodology for sophisticated health focussed policy analysis which situates public health within complex political processes and systems. The application of that lens is demonstrated with insights from a decade of research into urban and regional planning.

After World War II, the United States and Canada, two countries that were very similar in many ways, struck out on radically divergent paths to public health insurance. Canada developed a universal single-payer system of national health care, while the United States opted for a dual system that combines public health insurance for low-income and senior residents with private, primarily employer-provided health insurance - or no insurance - for everyone else.In "National Health Insurance in the United States and Canada", Gerard W. Boychuk probes the historical development of health care in each country, honing in on the most distinctive social and political aspects of each country - the politics of race in the U.S. and territorial politics in Canada especially the tensions between the national government and the province of Quebec. In addition to the politics of race and territory, Boychuk sifts through the numerous factors shaping health policy, including national values, political culture and institutions, the power of special interests, and the impact of strategic choices made at critical junctures. Drawing on historical archives, oral histories, and public opinion data, he presents a nuanced and thoughtful analysis of the evolution of the two systems, compares them as they exist today, and reflects on how each is poised to meet the challenges of the future.

Both comprehensive and accessible, this is an ideal resource for anyone who plans to teach or practice integrated, cost-effective healthcare in the 21st century. Currently, there is no coordinated system for training health-profession students to address the needs of patients with complex illnesses, nor is there a coordinated system for effectively delivering care to these patients. This book explores both sides of the problem, bringing interprofessional practice and education together to show how they are complementary-and how they can be integrated to provide better care. In many respects, this book is a personal account of the authors' experience with interprofessional teamwork and education over the past 40 years. It discusses what works and what doesn't and includes interviews, examples, and case studies that illustrate the perspectives of healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers. This second edition illuminates ways in which today's business model has changed interprofessional healthcare team practice and education, and it examines the needs of patients relative to healthcare teams and practitioner education. An entire chapter is devoted to the patient's position as both teacher and learner in relation to the team. The theoretical foundations of practice and education are highlighted, but the book also shares models that can be used for the practical development of programs. Explores the complexities of interprofessional teamwork and education, addressing both practice and teaching Discusses how patients are affected by healthcare providers who do not function as a cohesive team and looks at the patient's role in teamwork Offers a detailed model of interprofessional teamwork based on the authors' experience with a long-term, well-functioning interprofessional healthcare team Uses illustrative narratives and case studies to provide examples of the concepts and principles presented Includes a chapter based on interviews with patients and their caregivers to highlight experiences with functional and dysfunctional teams Presents new topics, such as critical areas of practice (primary care, long-term care, and transitions of care); ethical issues in teamwork; educational theory; the use of narrative; and challenges in sustaining interprofessional education

Leading Systems Change in Public Health: A Field Guide for Practitioners is the first resource written by public health professionals for public health professionals on how to improve public health by utilizing a systems change lens. Edited by leaders from the de Beaumont Foundation and the University of Illinois Chicago School of Public Health with chapters written by a diverse array of public health leaders, the book provides an evidence-based framework with practical strategies, processes, and tools for enacting meaningful change. Complete with engaging stories and tips to illustrate concepts in action, this book is the essential guide for current and future public health leaders working across and within individual, team, organization, or community levels.The book addresses subjects such as change leadership, racial justice and power sharing, and readiness for change. It addresses best practices for enacting change at different levels, including at the personal, interpersonal, organizational, and team or cross-sector level and it describes the factors, personalities, skills, personnel, and culture required for leading complex change. It not only covers the process of leading systems change but also the importance of community organizing and coalition building, identifying a shared understanding of the problem, how to leverage the lessons of implementation science, and how to understand the relationship between sustainability and public health. Practical examples and stories highlight challenges and opportunities, systems change in action, and the importance of crisis leadership - from mental health services to lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. Key Features: Enables practitioners to improve public health by utilizing a systems change approach Applies systems change strategies to help discover solutions for improved community health equity and racial justice Integrates practical public health examples and stories from innovative leaders in the field Includes tools for how to implement internal processes that generate creative and effective system change leadership

In the 1960s, feminists voiced their outrage about the health care system in the United States which routinely discriminated against women and, in so doing, literally jeopardized their health and well-being. Over a decade later, women's health advocates still stressed the need for reform of this male-dominated institution because of the on-going threat to the health of American women. In the 1990s, nearly 40 years after women began their fight for quality and equitable treatment from the medical profession, women unfortunately continue to confront problems on numerous levels including discrimination in medical research and in the availability of insurance and health care providers. Most alarming, however, is the fact that women today--like women in the '60s and before--lack information, understanding, and adequate diagnoses and treatment from their health caregivers.
This book extends from a program of research on women's health issues by the authors. More than 150 audio-taped, naturally occurring interactions between health caregivers and their female patients from three different health care settings--as well as ethnographic field notes in three additional settings which provide health care to women-- constitute the data for this investigation. They explore the consequentiality of relational issues during women's health care encounters and examine how health care participants save face, enact roles, co-construct their encounters, and accomplish the objective of education and medical care.
Unlike earlier works, this study utilizes an extensive data collection derived directly from hundreds of interactions between health care providers and their patients, as opposed to surveys or case studies of singular practitioners. The authors examine the data in light of insights from a variety of theoretical perspectives and are committed to exploring the implication that medical encounters are collaboratively managed by both patients and caregivers. Given these theoretical and empirical contributions, the authors believe this book will advance present understanding in the areas of health and relational communication, women's health care, gender issues in communication, conversation analysis, discourse processes, and institutional talk.

A guide to progressive healthcare packed full of actionable recommendations and a road map to a more inclusive and equitable future. Health for Everyone: A Guide to Politically and Socially Progressive Healthcare brings together experts across a range of healthcare and related disciplines to explore how we can make our healthcare system more progressive for groups that have been overlooked for too long. Rather than a health policy manual adopting a 30,000-foot view, this is a practical guide to start making healthcare more responsive, more patient-centered, and more community-led-right now, starting from present realities. Zackary Berger, a well-known primary care physician, activist, and bioethicist, has brought together teachers, clinicians, advocates, and researchers, to map the steps we need to take to provide better care to African American, Latinx, chronically ill, and disabled patients while improving the system overall for everyone Health for Everyone answers questions such as how do you provide the same care to every individual, when individuals are different? How do you get ideal care when you are a member of a disadvantaged group? What if you have a chronic condition that tends to get the short end of the stick, for which treatment might not be available, or be stigmatized?Focusing on a practical, yet ethical and philosophical case for progressive health care, this book focuses on what matters most to patients and on the steps we need to take to insure better health for everyone.

Professional Social Work Education and Health Care responds to critical concerns about the educational preparation of social workers within the rapidly changing health care environment. Contributors address issues and questions of importance to educators who are contending with the multiple challenges of rapidly changing institutions, fiscal constraints, and service to populations with complex social health care needs. This coverage provides you with important visions of the future education of leaders in health care social work. The editors of Professional Social Work Education and Health Care present information that looks to the future in order to open the floor for communication among the leaders in health care social work settings. Chapters explain the context of social work practice, exploe current social work practice issues, and look into continuing education and fieldwork. In doing so, they give you valuable information about imprtant issues such as: changes in social work department structure and function in challenging economic times collaborative efforts and reciprocal relationships in education and training emergence of networks that will join forces with hospitals preparation for short-term, solution-based social work the remaining need for traditional, long-term social work frameworks and values the shift in ideology to viewing clients as consumers rather than patients modification of curriculum to focus on parenting, health education, adolescent pregnancy prevention, and wellness programs emergence of a model for post-master's education field work in community-based health care placements versus inpatient hospital settingsThis book's model for making education and practice responsive to each other and for responding to the needs for collaboration makes it a valuable resource for social work educators, practitioners, and clinicians in health and mental health; advanced gerontologists in academic and practice agencies; and teachers of policy and research in health concentrations in schools of social work. Professional Social Work Education and Health Care is an excellent ancillary text for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in social work practice in health and mental health and is a strong addition to reading lists for classes on social work with the aged, social work research in health care, and field work seminars in health and mental health.

The NHS is in crisis. The past 10 years of Tory real-terms cuts in funding has been disastrous. This book looks at the threat to the NHS posed by the combination of two years of a global pandemic with the relentless policies pursued by Tory-led governments since 2010. With contributions by 13 experts on different aspects of the crisis: Lobby Akkinnola, Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Rehana Azam, National Secretary, Public Services GMB union; Kevin Courtney, Joint General Secretary, National Education Union, on Covid, education and schools; Sara Gorton, Head of Health UNISON, on pay and conditions of NHS staff; Colenzo Jarrett-Thorpe, National Officer Unite, the Health & Care Bill, on ambulance and other staff; Roger Kline, Research fellow at Middlesex University, on equalities and BAME; Roy Lilley, health policy analyst, on management views; Michael Mansfield, barrister QC, on holding the government to account; Sir Michael Marmot, Prof. of Epidemiology & Public Health, University College London, Director of the UCL Institute of Health Equity, on health inequality. Martin McKee, Prof. European Public Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, on public health; Neena Modi, Prof. Neonatal Medicine at Imperial College, on child and adolescent health, including mental health; Jan Shortt, General Secretary of the National Pensioners Convention, on care for the elderly; David Wrigley, Deputy Chair British Medical Association, on primary care; ... a superb reply to what is happening with our beloved NHS. We need it to help us in our struggles to push back against those who are snatching it away from us. All struggles need resolve, solidarity and hope, but they also need information. - From the foreword by Michael Rosen

This book offers a bio-psycho-social approach to evidence-based practice in health and social care. The book presents current evidence on the influence of genetic, epigenetic and environmental factors on behaviour, a survey of developmental factors from childhood to old age, and implications for practice at each stage.

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

The maintenance of health and the provision of services for the sick are probably some of the most challenging tasks facing modern government. "Health Care Systems in Seven Countries" looks at the way in which health care is organized and delivered in Australia, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, the UK and the USA. It also examines the continuing quest for solutions to some of the seemingly intractible problems on the health care agenda. The organization of health care in each country is analyzed within a common framework.
It is increasingly important that students and practitioners have a wider perspective and are able to draw upon knowledge of other health care systems in order to inform their own analysis. This book will make a substantial contribution towards that end.