Author Description

Straight talk from a leading physician about what every patient needs to know.Do you ever feel confused about the health care system? Do you worry that maybe a doctor-recommended treatment might not actually be the best remedy? Do you ever wish you had asked your doctor a few more questionsbut maybe felt intimidated or confused? If you answered yes to any of these questions, dont fret. You are not alone. As Dr. William Feldman explains, its not the patient who has the problem: its the system.In Caring for Your Health: How to Make the Right Decisions, Dr. Feldman describes the source of the publics unhappiness with the medical profession and health care, and goes on to explain to patients what evidence-based medicine is. When patients know how to ask the right questions of their health-care providers, he believes, they will be better equipped to make appropriate decisions. Some patients will wish to go even further: they may wish to look at the answers for themselves. This book provides patients with the knowledge and skills required to evaluate whether any recommended health interventionfrom preventing an illness to treating itwill do more good than harm.In the chapters on prevention, screening, diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, and clinical practice guidelines, case scenarios from the real world are used. In these scenarios, brief stories describing clinical health issues are used to show how patients and family members can acquire and evaluate the evidence necessary to make decisions; from minor (Should I give my child medication for his cold?) to major (Should I have a mastectomy for my breast cancer?).Caring for Your Health is an indispensable guide for every patient hoping to navigate the health care system.