On first impressions with its blue and gold covering this hardback (an e-book version is also available), it looks an imposing encyclopaedic and authoritative book. Perusing inside, the lists of editors and reviewers reinforce this impression; amongst those listed are the likes of former British Medical Journal editor Dr Richard Smith and media doctor Mark Porter. The work is now in its fourth edition.
The book is divided into five sections: Taking Control of Your Health, Assessing Your Symptoms, Looking for Disease, Your Body and Disease and Treating Disease. The largest section is that headed Your Body and Disease.
The Taking Control of Your Health section recognises health as being a function of much more than just illness. It examines factors such as the effects of the environment, heredity and lifestyle on health. It contains some useful summary charts and diagrams on specific problems, for example, relating to sleep and weight.
The Assessing Your Symptoms section contains a range of flow charts on problems such as tiredness, lumps and swellings and headache. By following the yes/no format of these charts, users are pointed to sections within the book and/or given advice on who to refer to – general practitioners or other health-care professionals.
The Looking for Disease section looks at techniques of medical diagnosis including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computerized tomography scanning. The mechanical aspects of these tools are not glossed over; for example, the extreme noise of MRI and the claustrophobia associated with both these types of scanning.
The Your Body and Disease section examines particular body systems, for example, cardiovascular and digestive, and also considers specific diseases, for example, cancer. Within each section, the particular problem section is broken down into chunks dealing with more specific areas. So, for example, anaemia is covered generally, then specific types of anaemia are discussed and within these causes, symptoms and what can be done to help are considered.
The Treating Disease section outlines the drug, surgical and psychological therapies that can be utilised to help treat problems. Again, the sections are subdivided into helpful chunks.
Throughout the work, the illustrations are of extremely high quality with a wide range of photographs, diagrams and images. The clarity of these is also impressive. The book also has a comprehensive index.
A couple of criticisms – the book covers traditional therapies only with no alternative medicine being considered at all. Perhaps this is a weakness? Also, the book is totally self-contained. Although websites, self-help organizations and phone numbers tend to change rapidly, inclusion of at least some of these would have immensely increased the value to the patients, giving them a chance to explore their problems further, either before or after a visit to the health professional.
This sort of work throws up a number of dilemmas. It is well documented that the worried well/higher social classes utilise health services more effectively and more heavily than the lower social classes, so where does the book fit in? It would be an ideal purchase for school, college and health libraries. Although of extremely high quality, it is probably too expensive for the average family. Perhaps, some consideration should be given to making the print book available in a cheaper paperback format.
