Sickness and Health in America: Readings in the History of Medicine and Public Health

by Judith Walzer Leavitt (Editor), Ronald L. Numbers

An invaluable resource for students, scholars, and general readers, this highly regarded and widely used social history of medicine and public health in the United States is now available in a third edition. Extensively revised and updated, it includes twenty-one new essays; graphs illustrating the rise in deaths caused by HIV, homicide, and suicide; and a greatly expanded Guide to Further Reading. Entirely new sections on Sickness and Health, Early American Medicine, Therapeutics, the Art of Medicine, and Public Health and Personal Hygiene have been added, supplementing updated sections on the Science of Medicine, Education, the Allied Health Professions, Image and Income, Institutions, Race and Medicine, Epidemics, Public Health Reform, and Public Health and Medical Theory. An introductory essay and a series of historical photographs complement the articles.

Genres: History, History Of Medicine, Medicine

600 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1978

Reviews

[Katherine K]

Love the history - and can use it to apply context to future writing. Dense, in that it took me 3 months to finish! Much of the detail around medical education, therapeutics and medicine in general was new to me as a public health professional. Impact of germ theory on public health especially helpful context.

[Chole Allyson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a great read for someone who is interested in the illnesses that America has seen and what was done to correct them.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

A GREAT collection of medical essays in U.S. history

[Sarah Catherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

The most dry and boring book out of all of the reading for my Medicine in America class.