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Paul Farmer
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Infections and Inequalities: The Modern Plagues, Updated with a New Preface Updated Edition

by Paul Farmer (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 134 ratings
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Paul Farmer has battled AIDS in rural Haiti and deadly strains of drug-resistant tuberculosis in the slums of Peru. A physician-anthropologist with more than fifteen years in the field, Farmer writes from the front lines of the war against these modern plagues and shows why, even more than those of history, they target the poor. This "peculiarly modern inequality" that permeates AIDS, TB, malaria, and typhoid in the modern world, and that feeds emerging (or re-emerging) infectious diseases such as Ebola and cholera, is laid bare in Farmer's harrowing memoir rife with stories about diseases and human suffering.

Using field work and new scholarship to challenge the accepted methodologies of epidemiology and international health, Farmer points out that most current explanatory strategies, from "cost-effective treatment" to patient "noncompliance," inevitably lead to blaming the victims. In reality, larger forces, global as well as local, determine why some people are sick and others are shielded from risk. Yet this moving autobiography is far from a hopeless inventory of insoluble problems. Farmer writes of what can be done in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds, by physicians and medical students determined to treat those in need: whether in their home countries or through medical outreach programs like Doctors without Borders. Infections and Inequalities weds meticulous scholarship in medical anthropology with a passion for solutions—remedies for the plagues of the poor and the social illnesses that have sustained them.
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  1. ISBN-10
    0520229134
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0520229136
  3. Edition
    Updated
  4. Publisher
    University of California Press
  5. Publication date
    February 23, 2001
  6. Language
    English
  7. Dimensions
    6 x 1 x 9 inches
  8. Print length
    424 pages
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

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"This book is a tour-de-force that reaches beyond traditional audiences and presents a strong argument for the significance of anthropology in confronting poverty and disease. . . . Students will find the bok tremendously informative, and many will undoubtedly want to emulate the career described in it." ― Medical Anthropology Quarterly

"[Farmer] weaves a multidisciplinary tale—beautifully readable—and told partly as social history, partly tropical medicine case histories, partly medical anthropology and party autobiography. It is rare for one writer to make use of so many disciplines, professions and genres for both style and content, but Paul Farmer pulls off this mega-mix seemingly effortlessly..." ― Culture, Health & Sexuality

"Farmer provides a well-referenced analysis of everything from cell-mediated immunity to healthcare access issues. The studies outlined show that extreme poverty, filth, and malnutrition are associated with infectious disease and what attitudes and behaviors contribute to the lack of understanding about disease. Arguing that the predictors of patient compliance are fundamentally "economic not cognitive or cultural," he builds a powerful and persuasive argument for a proactive multinational program to defuse the "infectious disease time-bomb." Highly recommended for all medical school library collections and any collection concerned with public-health issues." ― Library Journal

"Farmer's meticulous description of the stories of some patients, and of the circumstances in which they live, reminds us of the enormous suffering of a large part of humanity that has practically no access to the most basic medical care." ― BMJ: British Medical Journal

"Infections and Inequalities provides a theoretical basis for coping with the stark, global setting where medical knowledge exists but available resources are scarce." ― Yearbook of the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers

"Farmer's] message is urgent and relevant for saving millions of lives." ― Christian Century

From the Inside Flap

Farmer's work diverges strikingly from the current 'emerging infectious disease' literature, much of which misses essential points about causation that Farmer brings out very well. . . . It is sure to appeal to those general readers attracted to books like Garrett's The Coming Plague, as well as to readers in medicine, public health, and the sociomedical sciences.--Frederick L. Dunn, M.D.

Farmer argues against those who would insist that the health problems of the poor require and must await structural changes, that underdevelopment negates the efforts of physicians. He believes there is much that doctors can do, not simply as activists but as physicians.--Randall Packard, author of White Plague, Black Labor

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ University of California Press; Updated edition (February 23, 2001)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 424 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0520229134
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0520229136
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 134 ratings

About the author

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Paul Farmer

Paul Farmer

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Paul Farmer is UN's Deputy Special Envoy for Haiti and Chair of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard. He is also Professor of Anthropology at Harvard Medical School, chief of Social Medicine and Inequalities at Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital, and founding director of Partners In Health. Among his numerous awards and honors is the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation's "genius award."

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
134 global ratings
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Highly recommended
This book was recommended to me by one of my professors. I was anxious about getting it through Amazon. The seller of this book proved me wrong. The book is in excellent condition, with no cracks or damages of any kind. I highly recommend buying your books from this provider (of course if they are available).
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Top reviews from the United States

zain Q.
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended
Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2021
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This book was recommended to me by one of my professors. I was anxious about getting it through Amazon. The seller of this book proved me wrong. The book is in excellent condition, with no cracks or damages of any kind. I highly recommend buying your books from this provider (of course if they are available).
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zain Q.
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended
Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2021
This book was recommended to me by one of my professors. I was anxious about getting it through Amazon. The seller of this book proved me wrong. The book is in excellent condition, with no cracks or damages of any kind. I highly recommend buying your books from this provider (of course if they are available).
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Ikhtiyor Djuraev
5.0 out of 5 stars Good Read
Reviewed in the United States on September 24, 2019
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Interesting book with lots of insights on work in Haiti in the 1900s to current time. If you're interested in Public Health, this is definitely the book to read.
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Woman7
5.0 out of 5 stars A must read for anyone studying health.
Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2011
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This book is a must read for anyone wanting to understanding how inequalities trap people into poor health. The contributions by Paul Framer are inspiring and should be read by everyone wanting to understand the true environment of inequality and infectious disease of the world today. A truly sad but eye opening book.
3 people found this helpful
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TropicalDoc
4.0 out of 5 stars Worth reading
Reviewed in the United States on April 12, 2010
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This is a very thoughtful & readable book for those interested in the modern epidemics of tuberculosis and HIV infection. The highlights to me were the clinical vignettes from Haiti, Peru and the US. They certainly clearly demonstrate the challenges faced by the impoverished victims of these diseases.

I do take exception to the lumping of the poor in New York City with the poor in the other locations. Their personal agency is certainly much richer than that in the developing world. These "victims" do have access to care, medications, housing and other resources that those in Haiti and Peru simply do not have. Using heroin and other drugs is a personal choice. Not seeking to pursue education and training available is a personal choice. Choosing to participate in street violence is a personal choice. Choosing to be on public assistance from "cradle to grave" is a personal choice. Certainly mental illness and other disabilities are not a personal choice. Haitians and poor Peruvians would welcome such opportunities. We must dispel of this "victim" attitude when appropriate. It is clearly counterproductive, though is does keep liberal politicians in office.

Dr Farmer flirts with a "new world order" throughout this book. Let him not forget that his public health efforts in Central Haiti would not be possible without the financial gifts of his wealthy benefactors in Massachussetts. Let him remember that the development of effectve HIV medications is not happening in "egalitarian" countries but in those nations with the private money of those willing to take significant investment risks. In Chapter 10 he notes how the treatment of HIV patients with protease inhibitors in Europe is much less common than in the USA. Could this be because socialized medicine administrators have decided that the cost of these drugs is not worth the lives saved?! Is this akin to the fact that cancer patients in these socialized countries will survive half as long as our loved ones here in the United States (that is until our current administration has their way...!)

Although repetitive and agenda-oriented this is certainly a worthwhile read. Life will never be "utopian" here on earth. I frequently ponder why I was given so much when others barely exist. I strive to live my life with the maxim "to whom much is given, much is expected" at my spiritual core. We can provide health care world-wide if it becomes a global priority. Meanwhile we can each do our part. We don't have to live in a Marxist society to reach out to those in need.
6 people found this helpful
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Granite
5.0 out of 5 stars Gift
Reviewed in the United States on November 18, 2018
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A gift so no personal opinion. Certainly well liked.
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Evelyn
5.0 out of 5 stars Good
Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2013
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the digital book was in excellent conditions and easy to read. Thank you for your service during this fall semester 2013.
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Amy C. Le Blanc
5.0 out of 5 stars Great gift for a Med student
Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2013
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One of several books my step-daughter put on her Christmas list, she was excited to get it. In great shape, too!
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nora sheppard
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome
Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2014
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I love everything Paul Farmer...bought for class and will keep on my shelf.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

ieva
5.0 out of 5 stars Still very very relevant read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 29, 2023
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It's a must read to comprehend how any individual in any world's terrain remains globally interconnected. Written in detail about infectious diseases without siloing pathogens as 'super powers', rather exploring how anhtropocene activities, socioeconomic factors shaped and influenced viruses, bacteria to spread in poverty afflicted regions with little global attention or real interest. Even though it was written two decades ago, the content remains relevant and vital to the practices of medicine and public health.
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Michael Roy
5.0 out of 5 stars Proficiency
Reviewed in Canada on January 17, 2021
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Thank you for the awesome and proficient service!!
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in India on September 16, 2016
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good read
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Kelly Clark
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on March 19, 2018
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Really great book. I bought this for a class, but really enjoyed reading
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Doctor Zeke
5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 30, 2010
Verified Purchase
The evidence is damning. The Western world has ignored the poorer nations at its own peril. Farmer argues cogently, but beneath the logic lies an anger, and this compelling book tells the stories of how people are dying from treatable diseases merely because they're poor. Anyone interested in global health should read this book. Anyone interested in the way the world treats its lesser brethren should read this book. Anyone with a conscience should read this book.
2 people found this helpful
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