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Making sense of Public Health Medicine
Public Health (1998) 112, 429 ß R.I.P.P.H., 1998 http://www.stockton-press.co.uk/ph
Book Reviews Making sense of Public Health Medicine: by Jim Connelly and Chris Worth, published by Radcliffe Medical Press, (softback), £17.50, 155 pp, 1997, ISBN 1-85775186-8. This book takes a different approach to the introduction of public health medicine to that of other introductory texts. It aims to present the perspective of public health physicians in the United Kingdom, whilst recognising that the public health function should be carried out by a wider professional group. The ®rst three chapters cover the following core topics± de®ning public health medicine, describing the determinants of health and why health has improved. Whilst lacking detail, these chapters offer an ideal introduction to these areas and provide a fairly sound base for the more discursive chapters that follow. The chapter on the determinants of health is particularly well written. The following chapters focus on examining different perspectives on medicine, discussing how medicine should develop, a brief history of the NHS with a critical review of its developments, and on health policy. Although there have been new developments since the book was written, the last two chapters on health policy provide a good background to developments preceding the Green Paper `Our Healthier Nation', and the White Papers `The New NHS' and `A First Class Service'. These chapters should also enable the reader to examine these documents more critically. The authors' admission that the contents re¯ect their own values, interests and understanding is laudable in that it is explicit. Another important difference from most texts is that the authors have chosen not to formally reference, but to make notes on recommended texts with views about their relevance and usefulness. The content and the approach taken in this text make it particularly suitable for those new to the ®eld of public health, and not only to public health physicians. It would also make suitable reading for those contemplating a career in public health medicine. Selected chapters would also be suitable for medical and nursing students, and other health workers in training. Dr Martin Tobin Lecturer in Public Health Medicine Epidemiology and Public Health University of Leicester
Child rearing in ethnic minorities: by JS Dosanjh and Paul AS Ghuman, published by Multilingual Matters Limited, 288 pp (paperback) ISBN 1-853559-365-6. This book explores child-rearing practices of Punjabi parents. The authors report the results of interviews with two generations of mothers, highlighting the changing patterns of child-care between the different generations of Punjabi families living in Britain, North America and Canada. They look at the in¯uence of tradition, culture and religion on the child-care practices among the sample population. The book is based on two research projects. The ®rst one was conducted in 1976 comparing ways of bringing up children by Punjabi parents with an English sample studied by Newsons of University of Nottingham (1976), and the second one was conducted by the authors in 1995, based on interviews with two generations of 40 Punjabi parents. The ®rst two chapters of the book are dedicated to setting the scene, describing the general background to the migration and settlement patterns of Punjabis, and the methodology used in conducting the research. The rest of the book explores issues around pregnancy, birth, toilet training and feeding etc. The role of fathers and their attitudes towards involvement in child-care are also highlighted, illustrating the changing family structure and in¯uence of westernisation. The authors focus in on the mothers' views on training for independence, attitudes towards discipline, reward and punishment, involvement of children in the household chores and training responsibilities. There is a whole chapter dedicated to looking at parental attitudes towards school and education, which should be of interest to educationalists. This book could be of interest to any professional working with Punjabi children. Harjinder Narwhal Public Health Adviser Nottingham Health Authority Nottingham NG1 6GN UK
Book Reviews Making sense of Public Health Medicine: by Jim Connelly and Chris Worth, published by Radcliffe Medical Press, (softback), £17.50, 155 pp, 1997, ISBN 1-85775186-8. This book takes a different approach to the introduction of public health medicine to that of other introductory texts. It aims to present the perspective of public health physicians in the United Kingdom, whilst recognising that the public health function should be carried out by a wider professional group. The ®rst three chapters cover the following core topics± de®ning public health medicine, describing the determinants of health and why health has improved. Whilst lacking detail, these chapters offer an ideal introduction to these areas and provide a fairly sound base for the more discursive chapters that follow. The chapter on the determinants of health is particularly well written. The following chapters focus on examining different perspectives on medicine, discussing how medicine should develop, a brief history of the NHS with a critical review of its developments, and on health policy. Although there have been new developments since the book was written, the last two chapters on health policy provide a good background to developments preceding the Green Paper `Our Healthier Nation', and the White Papers `The New NHS' and `A First Class Service'. These chapters should also enable the reader to examine these documents more critically. The authors' admission that the contents re¯ect their own values, interests and understanding is laudable in that it is explicit. Another important difference from most texts is that the authors have chosen not to formally reference, but to make notes on recommended texts with views about their relevance and usefulness. The content and the approach taken in this text make it particularly suitable for those new to the ®eld of public health, and not only to public health physicians. It would also make suitable reading for those contemplating a career in public health medicine. Selected chapters would also be suitable for medical and nursing students, and other health workers in training. Dr Martin Tobin Lecturer in Public Health Medicine Epidemiology and Public Health University of Leicester
Child rearing in ethnic minorities: by JS Dosanjh and Paul AS Ghuman, published by Multilingual Matters Limited, 288 pp (paperback) ISBN 1-853559-365-6. This book explores child-rearing practices of Punjabi parents. The authors report the results of interviews with two generations of mothers, highlighting the changing patterns of child-care between the different generations of Punjabi families living in Britain, North America and Canada. They look at the in¯uence of tradition, culture and religion on the child-care practices among the sample population. The book is based on two research projects. The ®rst one was conducted in 1976 comparing ways of bringing up children by Punjabi parents with an English sample studied by Newsons of University of Nottingham (1976), and the second one was conducted by the authors in 1995, based on interviews with two generations of 40 Punjabi parents. The ®rst two chapters of the book are dedicated to setting the scene, describing the general background to the migration and settlement patterns of Punjabis, and the methodology used in conducting the research. The rest of the book explores issues around pregnancy, birth, toilet training and feeding etc. The role of fathers and their attitudes towards involvement in child-care are also highlighted, illustrating the changing family structure and in¯uence of westernisation. The authors focus in on the mothers' views on training for independence, attitudes towards discipline, reward and punishment, involvement of children in the household chores and training responsibilities. There is a whole chapter dedicated to looking at parental attitudes towards school and education, which should be of interest to educationalists. This book could be of interest to any professional working with Punjabi children. Harjinder Narwhal Public Health Adviser Nottingham Health Authority Nottingham NG1 6GN UK