Healthcare – Page 7 – Scott J. Pearson’s Book Review

An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business & How You Can Take It Back

By Scott J. Pearson | June 12, 2021June 12, 2021 by Scott J. Pearson

The American healthcare system famously spends more per person than any other system in the world, yet in outcomes, it ranks 37th. In this work, Rosenthal examines why that is the case and what practically can be done about it. Her examination operates both at levels of the patient, healthcare worker, business, insurance agency, and government/public. This book will leave you fuming that too many people are profiteering off of Americans’ health. It will also…

Gordis Epidemiology, 6th Edition

By Scott J. Pearson | May 19, 2021May 19, 2021 by Scott J. Pearson

Now in a sixth edition, this textbook is the seminal introduction to the field of epidemiology, or the study of disease in populations. It stands in the historical stream of Dr. Gordis, a leader of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins. Replete with diagrams, cartoons, case studies, and in-depth analysis, this work paints a comprehensive picture of the field in the 21st century. In the first section, the authors provide an introduction to epidemiology as it relates…

Healthcare

When We Do Harm: A Doctor Confronts Medical Error

By Scott J. Pearson | April 24, 2021April 24, 2021 by Scott J. Pearson

Medicine, wherever it is practiced, involves heavy things that are not for the faint of heart. Outcomes sometimes involve death, and errors are not always (or often) easy to spot. Poor outcomes can haunt doctors and nurses both professionally and personally – almost as much as they can haunt the families of patients. Nonetheless, in the United States, no comprehensive system exists to monitor medical errors. As Ofri details in this well-written and timely book,…

Healthcare HIV/AIDS Science

Immunology and the Quest for an HIV Vaccine: A New Perspective

By Scott J. Pearson | April 12, 2021April 12, 2021 by Scott J. Pearson

I usually write lengthier reviews, but I am not a subject-matter expert in immunology. Thus, I do not believe I am qualified to write a critical review of this work. Generally, the authors are skeptical about the current path of HIV vaccine development, and they propose a new direction. I am a member of a community advisory board for an HIV vaccine trial – an activity that led me to read this work. It is…

Healthcare Psychology

Bipolar Disorder: A Guide for You & Your Loved Ones

By Scott J. Pearson | March 31, 2021March 31, 2021 by Scott J. Pearson

Bipolar disorder (previously termed manic-depression) is a serious mental illness and requires medication and often counseling to treat. This mood disorder increases the likelihood of suicidal outcomes. Though relatively common, many patients find coping with the illness difficult. First, the patient must come to terms with his/her own frailty. Then, the patient must find appropriate help for the ailment. Finally, she/he must educate a support structure to handle future difficulties with the illness. Fortunately, this…

Healthcare HIV/AIDS

HIV/AIDS: A Very Short Introduction

By Scott J. Pearson | March 21, 2021March 21, 2021 by Scott J. Pearson

HIV, which can lead to AIDS, continues to present a pandemic situation wherever humans live. It differentially affects marginalized communities and tends to have an associated social stigma. It has hurt people in Africa particularly hard, and Whiteside, a professor in South Africa and a global leader in AIDS health discussions, is well-poised to witness the global effects. In this short and well-written work, he extracts the biomedical, social, political, and economic implications of this…

Healthcare History HIV/AIDS Science Society

The Origins of AIDS

By Scott J. Pearson | March 8, 2021March 20, 2021 by Scott J. Pearson

Understanding the origins of AIDS is important for at least three reasons. First, HIV/AIDS is an important biomedical global disease that is still not conquered. Second, much cultural rhetoric due to stigma exists in society about this disease, and blame for the AIDS pandemic have been wrongfully placed at the feet of many oppressed groups. Third, contemporary events with coronavirus have shown that humans aren’t as safe from disease and pandemic as we might imagine,…

Healthcare Research-Education Society

Introduction to Public Health

By Scott J. Pearson | March 3, 2021March 3, 2021 by Scott J. Pearson

Ironically, public health has been one of the most successful academic fields since 1900, yet still struggles to implement its agenda on the public (at least, in America). It is responsible for most of the doubling of life expectancy in America and for vast improvements in the quality of life. Schneider excellently chronicles those contributions with an eye towards the present and the future. She covers her topics in an accessible, easy-to-read manner that does…

Biostatistics Healthcare Research-Education

Biostatistics for Epidemiology and Public Health Using R

By Scott J. Pearson | February 27, 2021October 20, 2023 by Scott J. Pearson

First, let me define the lay of the land for the curious reader. Biostatistics is the study of statistics relevant for biomedical applications. It combines mathematics and the bio world, which includes Public Health and Epidemiology. R is free software for a programming environment that allows researchers to perform advanced analyses of statistical questions on datasets. This volume by Chan was the first textbook that addressed R and biostatistics in depth in the same volume.…

Healthcare Research-Education

Designing Clinical Research

By Scott J. Pearson | February 8, 2021February 8, 2021 by Scott J. Pearson

Research methods are important to almost all graduate students in the sciences. Design in particular can make or break the funding of a project – not to mention the implementation of the project itself! The stakes are rarely higher than in clinical, biomedical research where large dollars, impactful results, and ethical aspects of live patients are constantly at play. This book, written by a collaboration of highly successful biomedical researchers, teaches how to design research…