Where There is No Doctor
Encyclopedia
Where There is No Doctor is the most widely used health education book in tropical and sub-tropical developing countries. Based on David Werner
's experiences at his Project Piaxtla in western Mexico, it was originally written in Spanish
as Donde No Hay Doctor. It has since been revised and has sold over one million copies and been translated into over 100 languages. It is available for free as a PDF from the publisher. It covers all aspects of people's health ranging from diarrhoea to malaria
and bone fractures and ringworm. Special emphasis is placed on hygiene, a healthy diet and vaccinations, and the book explains to readers what they can do themselves and how to prevent, recognise and treat many common sicknesses. It also shows them how to recognise problems they are unable to cope with and need to refer to a health worker. This new revised edition includes information about some additional health problems such as AIDS
, dengue fever
, complications from abortion
, drug addiction and covers in detail both childbirth
and family planning
.
Its distribution is worldwide. The US Peace Corps
has distributed it in The Gambia
. In the British Medical Journal
a review said:
In JAMA
a review said:
Another example would be Uzbekistan
where a United States Agency for International Development
grant enabled a team under Dr Donald Elsworth and Robert Graves of Central Asian Free Exchange to translate the book into Uzbek
.
This book was referenced in a 2004 article in The Lancet entitled, Can we achieve health information for all by 2015?
(Godlee, Pakenham-Walsh, Ncayiyana, Cohen, Packerit). Underlining the importance of straightforward information in the language of the reader, the authors wrote that "A community health worker may find a single copy of Where There is No Doctor, adapted and written in the local language, more useful than access to thousands of international journals."
The book is available free-of-charge in pdf format.
David Werner
David Werner is author of the book Donde No Hay Doctor , co-founder and co-director of HealthWrights and a Visiting Professor at Boston University International School of Public Health...
's experiences at his Project Piaxtla in western Mexico, it was originally written in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
as Donde No Hay Doctor. It has since been revised and has sold over one million copies and been translated into over 100 languages. It is available for free as a PDF from the publisher. It covers all aspects of people's health ranging from diarrhoea to malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
and bone fractures and ringworm. Special emphasis is placed on hygiene, a healthy diet and vaccinations, and the book explains to readers what they can do themselves and how to prevent, recognise and treat many common sicknesses. It also shows them how to recognise problems they are unable to cope with and need to refer to a health worker. This new revised edition includes information about some additional health problems such as AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
, dengue fever
Dengue fever
Dengue fever , also known as breakbone fever, is an infectious tropical disease caused by the dengue virus. Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and joint pains, and a characteristic skin rash that is similar to measles...
, complications from abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
, drug addiction and covers in detail both childbirth
Childbirth
Childbirth is the culmination of a human pregnancy or gestation period with the birth of one or more newborn infants from a woman's uterus...
and family planning
Family planning
Family planning is the planning of when to have children, and the use of birth control and other techniques to implement such plans. Other techniques commonly used include sexuality education, prevention and management of sexually transmitted infections, pre-conception counseling and...
.
Its distribution is worldwide. The US Peace Corps
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name. The mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance, helping people outside the United States to understand US culture, and helping...
has distributed it in The Gambia
The Gambia
The Republic of The Gambia, commonly referred to as The Gambia, or Gambia , is a country in West Africa. Gambia is the smallest country on mainland Africa, surrounded by Senegal except for a short coastline on the Atlantic Ocean in the west....
. In the British Medical Journal
British Medical Journal
BMJ is a partially open-access peer-reviewed medical journal. Originally called the British Medical Journal, the title was officially shortened to BMJ in 1988. The journal is published by the BMJ Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Medical Association...
a review said:
Chances are that if you visited a remote district hospital in a developing country you would find a well thumbed copy of Where There Is No Doctor in its library. The book is intended primarily for village health workers, but generations of doctors and medical missionaries who have worked in under-resourced communities globally will vouch for its value in providing concise reliable information.
In JAMA
Jama
Jama or JAMA may refer to:* Jama Software, a privately held company in Portland, Oregon* Journal of the American Medical Association, an international peer-reviewed general medical journal...
a review said:
it is still not known if the book effectively improves health. [However,] In most of the world, where physicians are not available and diseases are rampant, the status quo is unacceptable.
Until better solutions are created, Where There Is No Doctor is probably a useful stop-gap measure.
Another example would be Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
where a United States Agency for International Development
United States Agency for International Development
The United States Agency for International Development is the United States federal government agency primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid. President John F. Kennedy created USAID in 1961 by executive order to implement development assistance programs in the areas...
grant enabled a team under Dr Donald Elsworth and Robert Graves of Central Asian Free Exchange to translate the book into Uzbek
Uzbek language
Uzbek is a Turkic language and the official language of Uzbekistan. It has about 25.5 million native speakers, and it is spoken by the Uzbeks in Uzbekistan and elsewhere in Central Asia...
.
This book was referenced in a 2004 article in The Lancet entitled, Can we achieve health information for all by 2015?
(Godlee, Pakenham-Walsh, Ncayiyana, Cohen, Packerit). Underlining the importance of straightforward information in the language of the reader, the authors wrote that "A community health worker may find a single copy of Where There is No Doctor, adapted and written in the local language, more useful than access to thousands of international journals."
The book is available free-of-charge in pdf format.