History of Medicine, Second Edition: A Scandalously Short Introduction

by Jacalyn Duffin

Jacalyn Duffin's History of Medicine has for ten years been one of the leading texts used to teach medical and nursing students the history of their profession. It has also been widely used in history courses and by general readers. An accessible overview of medical history, this new edition is greatly expanded, including more information on medicine in the United States, Great Britain, and in other European countries. The book continues to be organized conceptually around the major fields of medical endeavor such as anatomy, pharmacology, obstetrics, and psychiatry and has grown to include a new chapter on public health. Years of pedagogic experience, medical developments, and reader feedback have led to new sections throughout the book on topics including bioethics, forensics, genetics, reproductive technology, clinical trials, and recent outbreaks of BSE, West Nile Virus, SARS, and anthrax. Up to date and filled with pithy examples and teaching tools such as a searchable online bibliography, History of Medicine continues to demonstrate the power of historical research to inform current health care practice and enhance cultural understanding.

Genres: History, Medicine, Nonfiction, Science, Medical, History Of Medicine, Biology

480 pages, Hardcover

Published May 29, 2010

Reviews

[Dasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really great textbook and introduction to the history of medicine. Duffin uses an intersectional approach and unlike many textbooks, she is not afraid to insert her own analysis into the narrative. It also contains sections on how history is written/how to write history/how to find good sources etc., all of which is critical for students who use this for a class.

[betty · Rating 1 out of 5]

i’m sorry jacalyn duffin you seem like a perfectly nice lady but every time i open this book it means i have to write another idis blog again and i wanna kms

[Bárbara Portugal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Um livro com uma temática de muito interesse - uma história geral da medicina ocidental.

Um vetor que achei particularmente interessante por toda a obra foi a própria autora, a priori, reconhecer que a sua investigação nunca podia chegar a todo o lado, sendo esta, por isso, quase um sumário de tantas especialidades da medicina. Nem por isso o livro se torna fatigante, muito pelo contrário. A autora ao procurar mostrar várias perspectivas sobre o mesmo problema e até ao não mitificar o ofício do médico dá a esta leitura uma mundividência, uma panóplia de perspectivas honestas e, claro, interessantes.

Recomendo a todos os curiosos!

[Cynthia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very happy to have been able to hear Dr. Duffin speak at the medical humanities conference hosted by Queens Medical students on behalf of Jaclyn Duffin. This is where I learned about her and her work, and was inspired to give this scandalously short introduction to medical history a go.

Well researched and thoughtful - you can tell from the succinctness and compactness all of which make an impact. She is aware of her worldview and biases when giving a recounting of how things were and why they came to be.

It’s fun for me to read about subjects I learn in school, and as the school year picks up again it seems like an appropriate time to finish this book and remind myself about how privileged I am to be able to study such a wonderful discipline.

I liked the chapter about children, it reminded me that things are contextual, even things such as “childhood”. They are defined by the times.

The last chapter that spoke about progress in history as a historical sin opened up my eyes and shifted my worldview. I realized I am presentist, meaning I believe the present is the best and that it is getting better from history. This is a flawed way of thinking, for it is easy to look retroactively back and wonder about how we could have ever been so “backwards”. This was a great chapter.

I would recommend this book to medical students interested in the origins of their discipline!

[Stefanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This looks like it would be a huge bore, but it's fascinating and written in an engrossing style.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely fun and accessible. Written for first year medical students without being condescending. Like Porter, Duffin outlines the history of medicine, though she sorts it thematic as to how medical students learn. This makes the overall history more digestible and easier to understand overall. Also allows for a wider (but still mainly Western) focus on medical history, the inclusion of women’s and children’s medical history were especially notable. Also enjoyed the fact that Duffin's love of graphs carries on this book.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

In my opinion, this book sets the standard for both good text books and good history writing. Duffin covers a variety of topics in the history of medicine, never attempting an exhaustive history and instead selecting key events and example to highlight relevant trends and issues. The book is written as an introductory text book for medical students, but it serves the general public just as well.

Perhaps the best thing about the book is Duffin's masterful writing. She keeps the narrative engrossing over 15 chapters, each loaded with pictures, quotes and anecdotes, while never losing focus on the main theme of the chapter. She keeps an even tone as a historian, addressing medical moral issues throughout history; she proposes a simple moral interpretation of the material, instead encouraging the reader to reflect on the topics and how they relate to modern medical practice.

Some of the more interesting and useful elements of the book are the Appendices: A) Recipients of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (1901-1998); B) Resources and Research Tools; C) Educational Objectives (by Chapter). While these are most useful for students of history or medicine, they are interesting for the casual reader as well. I especially like the Education Objectives, as they summarize the key ideas of the text, showing the Duffin's purpose really is to clarify ideas with this ideal educational tool.

[Elizabeth]

The author gave the 2008 Noguchi lecture at Johns Hopkins.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting reading, raises questions, and it IS a textbook. Great reading for a textbook.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably the most interesting textbook I've ever read, and an amazing resource for understanding medical history.

[Lucas]

Informative, but part of the problem of a layperson reading this academic textbook is that there are discussions of diseases and pathology that I have no knowledge of, so instead of spending a week looking up and learning about each medical term I didn't know (which only happened in the later part of each chapter, for each chapter slices out an aspect of medicine such as anatomy or psychology and goes at it chronologically, and the latest history in the medical field is quite dense with Comex terminology) I had to at times make peace with my ignorance and just let shit slide. Won't be the last time, either.

[Zach Nash · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like that this is a lot more about how we think about disease and medicine rather than a list of dates and facts.

I think this was a good book to read and I learned a lot from it, but non fiction has to be really outstanding to keep me engaged and a few chapters of this one felt like work.

[Publius · Rating 2 out of 5]

Extremely tedious to read... Duffin's style is very dense and boring. She also seems to compulsively view history from a feminist-centric viewpoint, which was quite annoying at times.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good overview of medicine and an interesting take on philosophy with the game "heroes and villains of medicine."

[Antigona]

(read for class - very interesting!!)

[Jack T · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 does inevitably miss some stuff

[Rejean Gagnon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very detailed and quite fascinating. More than a layman wants unless you're very into the subject.

[Norain · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a textbook so if it's boring and long, I have no one else to blame but myself for choosing to read a textbook during my free time.

[Czarny Pies · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was written for medical students with the purpose of illustrating how the profession while making great advances that dramatically extended human life expectancy also made numerous errors. The message is that the young doctors can expect to see over their careers many changes in what are considered to be the appropriate treatments for specific diseases.

The discussions in this book on all the issues touched (e.g. paediatrics, pharmaceutics, diagnostic equipment, etc.) are all quite fascinating and highly informative for the layman. As the book is simple to read, it is well worth the time required to read it.

[Aru · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had read portions of this during my undergrad for a course and found it so interesting that I ended up reading the whole thing - and I'm not one to read a class text for fun. Duffin provides a narrative that is easy to follow and doesn't feel like you're reading a highly academic text. Excellent book and should be required reading for all those interested in the health sciences and medicine.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! I found it incredibly insightful as Duffin takes the reader through a brief history of many major aspects of Western Medicine. I found this book to be very well written and so I did not feel like I was reading a textbook at all.

[Ashley]

Only read some of it for school.