Merck Manual of Health and Aging: The Complete Home Guide to Healthcare and Healthy Aging For Older People and Those Who Care About Them
- Book Review,
by Mark H. Beers (Editor)
Amazon.com
Merck Pharmaceuticals have edited a clear and comprehensive reference for older adults. Dr. Mark Beers begins with the age-old questions: when does a person become old and why does the body change? The remainder of this guide is divided into preventive and active care for self and others. The list of topics is a virtual everything you want to know about aging: nutritional needs, finding a doctor, understanding tests, surgery and rehabilitation, and long term care. More than one hundred specific medical conditions including fractures, constipation, tinnitus, dental disease, and dementia are explained and cross referenced with useful details. Although a clinical explanatory model prevails, non-traditional methods such as acupuncture and homeopathy receive honorable mention. The guide takes an unflinching look at sexuality, end of life decisions, and mistreatment of elderly adults. Other practical c! hapters are devoted to driving dilemmas and navigating the Byzantine financing of health care. This information is punctuated with essays from older adults--including a cheeky Max Sendak cartoon. The essays, along with charts, photos, and illustrations help to lessen the book's encyclopedic tone. Many older adults and the people who care for them will welcome the well-organized format and richly detailed information of this guide. --Barbara Mackoff
From Publishers Weekly
This mammoth reference book begins with the premise that "[t]he need for good, unbiased health care information runs deep, whether people are seeking to become more active in caring for themselves or others." It then goes on to provide for that need, covering all aspects of health changes through the process of aging, and explaining how to prevent or manage those changes. The book is easy to navigate and cross-reference, and includes simple but useful drawings to explain such conditions as aneurysms, heart valve disorders and pressure sores (aka bedsores). The first two sections address "the fundamentals of aging" (why aging occurs, how it affects the body and how it's changing the U.S.) and "caring for self and others," including preventive care, nutrition, appropriate use of drugs and other topics. The authors then go through an in-depth discussion of medical conditions that can affect the elderly, explaining symptoms, treatment and aftercare. This chapter supplies sound information to enhance interaction with health care providers and enable continuity of care, for both patients and caregivers. The final section covers social, legal and ethical issues and includes a guide to paying for health care and a useful reference table for prescription drugs. Twenty-five inspiring essays by seniors are sprinkled throughout the text, giving this encyclopedic text a human aspect. This excellent handbook is an essential resource for mature people, their families and caregivers. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
As our population ages, information about the aging process and caring for the elderly is a necessity. The Merck Manual of Health and Aging, a lay version of The Merck Manual of Geriatrics (3d ed., Wiley, 2000), provides it in a very accessible format.The book has four sections. The first, "Fundamentals of Aging," covers such questions as when does a person become old, why does the body change, and how aging affects the organs and systems. Related issues, such as finances, living arrangements, and coping with chronic disease and disability, appear also. Section 2, "Caring for Self and Others," deals with preventive medical care, nutrition, continuity of care, long-term care, and palliative and end-of-life care. Section 3 covers specific medical conditions that are more common in the elderly: falls, sleep problems, movement disorders, heart disorders, cancers, etc. A chapter on the importance of exercise with recommendations for those with specific diseases is very useful. The last section, "Social, Legal, and Ethical Issues," provides vital information on the decision to stop driving, intimacy, mistreatment of the elderly, and health care costs. A chapter explaining informed consent, confidentiality, capacity and competency, and advance directives will help people prepare for medical treatment. Two appendixes cover the generic and trade names of drugs commonly prescribed for seniors and a referral list of organizations. Charts and sidebars offer useful supplemental information. Twenty-five essays in which people share their feelings and insights about aging are scattered throughout the book.The Merck Manual of Health and Aging is unique because it focuses on how disorders are different in older adults rather than discussing all aspects of a disease. It also emphasizes adapting to the bodily changes of aging and finding effective ways to cope. It is reasonably priced and belongs in all public, medical, and consumer health libraries. Barbara Bibel
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
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