The Death of Humane Medicine: And the Rise of Coercive Healthism

by Petr Skrabanek

Este libro trata de los peligros del culto a la salud, de los peligros de una ideología de "salud nacional". Su estructura es simple, la primera parte muestra cómo el tema de la salud es explotado con fines profesionales, políticos y comerciales. La ssegunda parte trata sobre todos los estilos de vida (lifestylism), y nos lleva a través de ejemplos históricos en la búsqueda individual de la quimera de la salud hasra la instauración de la normalización colectiva del comportamiento como política estatal. La tercera parte se centra en la tiranía de la normalización, en la importancia que tiene manterner el paternalism social para la supervivencia de los estilos de vida, y en otras manifestaciones de la medicina coercitiva. Este libro no trata de la medicina sino de la perversión de sus ideales, especialmente en los países dominados por la ideología médica anglo-americana. Y eso que la medicina occidental es la única que tiene fundamentos racionales.

Genres: Medicine

200 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Petr Skrabanek (October 27, 1940 – June 21, 1994) was a doctor, physician, professor of medicine, and author of several books and many articles. Skrabanek was described by Ben Goldacre as "a lifelong champion of clear thinking, scepticism, and critical appraisal", and expressed vocal criticism of what he dubbed "cacademics", "quackupuncturists" and "nonsensus-consensus". Skrabanek was a polymath, loving jazz, history, literature and playing the piano. He spoke several languages thanks to which he was able to deeply study Joyce's last work - the avant-garde novel Finnegans Wake.

Reviews

[Gijs Limonard · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 stars. The author makes some valid points on the reductionist nature of contemporary medicine, the commodification of the concept of health (healthism, lifestyle-ism) and both the ignorance and unwillingness of both doctors and patients in acknowledging the limits of medicine.

[Wiktor Dynarski · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I appreciated Skrabanek's discursive style and the research he put into painting a picture of how healthism and medical monitoring are dangerous to our societies (a topic very close to me as I also research the question of impact of medical societies and the WHO on trans people and our communities), there are many of his reflections, especially on sexual harassment and the question of sexual autonomy, which aren't simply wrong but also very dangerous.
This book, of course, is a product of its time and needs to be treated as such, but I also often see readers dismiss these kinds of problems purely because of when a certain piece has been created.
In other words, worth the read but with a critical approach and the understanding that we have indeed changed out outlook on sexuality and body autonomy. Or at least I would hope so.
(Although the fact that Skrabanek treats the word "feminist" as an insult makes me rethink whether any change in that matter has actually taken place).

[Jenny Sommers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book and have used it in my own research. Skrabanek, in his engaging, polemical style, speaks a truth about medicine that few will acknowledge.