Add BookmarkA Brief History of Disease, Science and Medicine
This introduction to the history of medicine begins with the evolution of infectious diseases at the end of the last ice age. It describes the origin of science and medicine in ancient civilizations, including China and India. The first third of the book covers the early period that is considered the "classical" history of medicine. The remainder describes the evolution of modern medicine and surgery up to the present. The final chapter is a history of medical economics and explains the origi... (show more)
This introduction to the history of medicine begins with the evolution of infectious diseases at the end of the last ice age. It describes the origin of science and medicine in ancient civilizations, including China and India. The first third of the book covers the early period that is considered the "classical" history of medicine. The remainder describes the evolution of modern medicine and surgery up to the present. The final chapter is a history of medical economics and explains the origin of health insurance, HMOs and medical malpractice lawsuits, subjects explained nowhere else in the medical school curriculum.
There is a 40 page index and over 550 footnotes, most of them references to the original articles described in the text. A bibliography of essential sources is also included. (show less)
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I met Dr. Kennedy on a cruise at a dinner one evening. He mentioned he'd written a book on the history of medicine so, out of curiosity, I ordered it.
This is a very readable history of medicine and disease. Kennedy does an exceptional job at compressing a vast history into a relatively brief book. This book is intended for medical students and other physicians, but anyone interested in medical history should benefit from Dr. Kennedy's writing. This is not a comprehensive history, but an... (show more)
I met Dr. Kennedy on a cruise at a dinner one evening. He mentioned he'd written a book on the history of medicine so, out of curiosity, I ordered it.
This is a very readable history of medicine and disease. Kennedy does an exceptional job at compressing a vast history into a relatively brief book. This book is intended for medical students and other physicians, but anyone interested in medical history should benefit from Dr. Kennedy's writing. This is not a comprehensive history, but an overview, filled with interesting facts and anecdotes.
It was interesting to me to read about many of the names with which I was already familiar and their contributions to medicine and science - Halstead, Osler, Virchow, Bilroth, etc. It was also interesting that many of these men made multiple extremely important contributions. What was even more fascinating was the fact that many of the advances in medicine were discovered by medical students or residents.
I recommend this book for anyone who is involved or interested in medicine. (show less)
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Kennedy has done a remarkable job with this book. The pages are packed full of information. Anyone interested in science or medicine would like this book. The language is not overly medical nor scientific. It would be a great gift for someone who has these interests. Well worth the money.
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