Art and Science of Health Care – Psychology and Human Factors for Practitioners

Citation

(2012), "Art and Science of Health Care – Psychology and Human Factors for Practitioners", International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Vol. 25 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijhcqa.2012.06225daa.015

Art and Science of Health Care – Psychology and Human Factors for Practitioners

Art and Science of Health Care – Psychology and Human Factors for Practitioners

Article Type: Recent publications From: International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Volume 25, Issue 4

Please note that unless expressly stated, these are not reviews of titles given. They are descriptions of the books, based on information provided by the publishers The

Edited by B.D. Kirkcaldy,Hogrefe Publishing,2012,ISBN: 978-0-88937-423-2

Keywords: Healthcare improvement measures, Effective healthcare interventions, Clinical practice

Going beyond pure technology – how “soft factors” are vital to improve medical care.

Technological innovations and new drugs have led to an explosion in the costs of medical care, and also to the realization among both medical and allied practitioners and patients that such innovation has not necessarily led to more effective care. A gap exists between theory and real-life practice – one that this book attempts to bridge.

Thought-provoking essays by an array of distinguished contributors, based on contemporary research and wide-ranging experience in clinical practice, show how we can and must go beyond pure technology in order to improve clinical care. Cultural and social factors on the part of the patients; the practitioner’s own personality and other “soft factors”; society trends such as increased migration; communication skills; techniques ranging from mindfulness, cognitive psychology, and narrative medicine, to humour. All these and other human factors that medical professionals and those in training (physicians, nurses, counsellors, and others) need to integrate into practice to provide effective and cost-effective care are explored and illuminated here by leading experts from a variety of disciplines.

Contents include:

1. 1.

   Introduction.

2. 2.

   Culture, health and medicine:

3. 3.
   • •

     Evolutionary aspects in medicine.

   • •

     Circadian misalignment and its impact on the medical profession.

4. 4.

   Personality and health outcome determinants: medical professionals:

5. 5.
   • •

     Stress and its impact on psychosocial well-being among medical professionals.

   • •

     Selecting a medical practitioner.

6. 6.

   Cultural and individual differences: aspects in patient care:

7. 7.
   • •

     Migrant health: idioms of distress and health services.

   • •

     Difficult patients, difficult situations: psychological overview.

8. 8.

   Cognitive psychology and medical/therapeutic care:

9. 9.
   • •

     Mindfulness and healthcare professionals.

   • •

     Medical health care: cognitive psychologists’ contribution.

10. 10.

    Literary and economic aspects of medicine:

11. 11.
    • •

      The economic dimensions of medical practice.