Books by Joav Merrick

Book SynopsisPublic health is the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organised efforts and informed choices of society, organizations (public and private), communities and individuals. The mission of public health is the fulfillment of society''s interest in assuring the conditions which make people healthy. In the twentieth century, one of the improvements in public health has been an increased life expectancy in the developed world. However, we have also seen other achievements in the provision of vaccinations, motor-vehicle safety, safer workplaces, control of infectious diseases, decline in deaths from coronary heart disease and stroke, safer and healthier foods, healthier mothers and babies, and family planning and fluoridation of drinking water. There has been some positive trends in recent years in developed countries, such as less smoking, more physical activity and better vaccination status. Still, drinking, obesity, violent crime and lack of health insurance are some challenging areas in public health. We need to apply what we have learned and know now in order to reduce health inequality in our nations in the future. We also need to use advanced technology to improve health and address new health issues as they emerge over time; it is imperative that people are ready to intervene and minimize adverse effects of new diseases at all times.

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Book SynopsisHuman sexuality is a complex phenomenon involving the interaction of biologic gender, core gender identity and gender role behavior. Successful completion of normal stages of sexual development is important for children and adolescents to allow for an optimal adult life. Controversies arise for clinicians as they work with their pediatric patients regarding health care sexuality issues. It is important that clinicians help these patients in an unbiased and neutral manner. As adults, these children and adolescents will function in a number of sexuality roles, whether heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual. In this book, the authors review many of these complex and critical issues that involve the fascinating development of human sexuality.

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Book SynopsisWherever we live or whatever we do, disability will always be a part of us. With increasing age, we will all surely encounter disability. Disability can arise from age or outside forces, such as a traffic accident. It is estimated that more than a billion people, or about 15% of the world's population, live with some form of disability. Disability research is therefore important not only for the individual and the family, but also for the society to adapt and facilitate a better quality of life for this segment of the population. For example, research from the United States found significant disparities in the prevalence of disability between urban and rural residents, with rural residents having the highest prevalence of disability. Such epidemiology and survey research can be important tools for public health and can guide policy makers to allocate budgets, service facilities and expertise. In this book, we have gathered recent disability research from around the world that we hope will be of interest to the reader.Table of ContentsIntroduction; Disability and Research; Health, Illness and Disability; Inclusive Education of Children with Disabilities; Being a Parent with Visual Impairment; Burden of Injury Disparity Borne by Developing Countries; Services to Children with Visual Impairment and Disability; Disability Employment Experiences in India; Language Skills and Effects of Stimulation with Physical Exercises on Selected Coordination Abilities; Modelling Predictors of Stroke Disease in South Africa; Predicators for Complications Post Total Knee Replacement Surgeries; Pathological Demand Avoidance in an Adult with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Sex Offending; About the Editors; About the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Isreal; Index.

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Book SynopsisAs we reflect on causes of death in our children, methods of prevention become critically important to research and implement. Research notes that millions of childhood injuries result in thousands of deaths. Death can be due to medical disease and considerable progress including prevention of death has been made in management of cancer and other conditions over the past century, especially in developed countries. It is also important to apply principles of management and prevention to consequences of aggression and chronic illness. As illustrated in this book, we must look at underlying issues, both medical and behavioural, in the physical and psychiatric health of our children. We should apply known principles of preventive medicine that are being researched in the 21st century to prevent needless deaths in our paediatric population. Prevention may arise from such understanding and application of known concepts with fewer paediatric deaths and fewer parents/families undergoing heart-breaking grieving processes.Table of ContentsDedication: Stewart E. Greydanus (1942-1947); Preface: Why do Children Die?; Death and Dying: Perspectives of Religious Thought; Death Before Birth: Issues of Pregnancy Termination; Prevention of Newborn Death: Newborn Screening; Perspectives on Newborn Palliative Care; Unintentional Death in Childhood; Pediatric Palliative Care in Congenital Heart Disease: A Case-Based Approach in Infants and Children; Sudden Cardiac Death in the Pediatric and Adolescent Population; Pediatric Mortality During Surgical Procedures: Epidemiologic and Psychosocial Considerations; Chronic Disease and the Dying Adolescent; Pediatric Suicide: Establishing A Basis for Probing Its Mysteries and Complexities; Self-Cutting and Suicide in Adolescents; Suicidality and the LGBT Youth: Tragic Underpinnings of Societal Insouciance, Impuissant Aesculapian Response and Implacable Sacerdotal Dogma; Fatal Child Abuse; Tragedy of Sibling Abuse: Convergence of Fiction, Research, and the Reality of Human Nature; Child Sexual Abuse Perspectives; Perspectives on Incest: A Perplexing Paradox Characterized by Destructive Betrayal of Trust; The Killing Fields on the Roads: Can We Protect the Teen Driver?; Introduction to Death, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Motor Vehicle Crashes in Children and Adolescents: A Historically Delayed Realization; Death, Injury and Motor Vehicle Crashes in Children and Adolescents: What Does the Future Hold?; Concepts of Aggression: Perspectives in the 21st Century; Psychosocial Adaptation to Chronic Illness and Disability; About the Editors; About the Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Western Michigan University Homer Stryker MD School of Medicine (WMED), Kalamazoo, Michigan USA; About the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Israel.

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Book SynopsisBreak the Cycle of Children''s Environmental Health Disparities (Break the Cycle) is an annual collaborative interdisciplinary research and training program involving university students in academic tracks focusing on the impact of adverse social, economic, environmental, and political factors on children''s health, development, education, and prospects for their future. The target populations are communities where there is a substantial measure of poverty associated with social, ethnic, racial, and political marginalization, environmental exposures and environmental injustice with high risks to children''s health and well-being. Participating students are required to develop projects that focus on preventing or reducing adverse environmental factors or their impact on children''s health and promote positive practices to improve the future outcome for children who live in these communities. Student projects cover a wide range of adverse factors and their associated health implications across the lifespan, and propose solutions at an individual, family, community, and societal level, with the potential for a positive intergenerational impact. At the end of the project period, participating students are required to present the results of their work at a national conference and then write a manuscript for publication. The papers in this publication represent the work of students who participated in the 15th Annual Break the Cycle program 2019-2020. The phrase Break the Cycle in this context uses the ecological construct of the cycle of environmental health disparities and offers a framework for tackling health disparities and promoting health equity among children who are vulnerable as a consequence of adverse social, economic, environmental and political factors.

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Book SynopsisAbout one in four youths used a tobacco product during the past 30 days. By school level, this is approximately three in ten high school students and one in eight middle school students. Since 2014, e-cigarettes have been the most commonly used tobacco product among youths. It is reasonable to assume that many young smokers are practicing this habit while with friends or at parties, exposing their friends and peers to hazardous passive smoking, which is also the case for smaller children exposed to their parental smoking. Smoking is just one important public health issue in childhood and adolescence, but there are many other issues in this period of our development. In this book we have gathered some recent research on children and youth from various places around the world on many topics, not just limited to smoking, which we hope will be of interest to the reader.Table of ContentsIntroduction; Smoking and Other Issues in Childhood and Adolescence; Adverse Childhood Experiences and Child Health Insurance Coverage; FIFA, Body Composition and Physical Fitness among Obese Children; Care Pathways and Out of Pocket Expenditure Among Children with Tuberculosis Attending a Tertiary Health Care Facility; Undernutrition and its Determinants among Indigenous Thami Children under Five in the Dolakha District of Nepal; What are Hong Kong Chinese Parents Perceptions of Materialism and Egocentrism in Their Children?; Housing Risk Factors Associated with Diarrhea and Pneumonia Among Children Residing in an Urban Slum in Enugu Metropolis, Nigeria; Youth Mental Health Services in Qatar; Perceived Achievement of Subject Learning Outcomes, Pedagogical Strategy, Facilitating Skills and Academic Performance of University Engineering Students; Gender Of Baby and Postpartum Depression Among Adolescent Mothers in Central Java, Indonesia; The Association Between Self-Regulation and Violent Propensities Among Saudi Girls; Factors Associated with Sexual Engagement Among Adolescents in Sarawak, East Malaysia; Effect Of Peer and Parent-Led Educational Intervention on HIV Knowledge and Attitude of In-School Adolescents in Selected Secondary Schools in Ogun State, Nigeria; Self-Esteem And Assertiveness as Predictors of Intentions to Practice Safe Sexual Behavior Among Adolescents in Selected Secondary Schools in Ibadan, Oyo State; Effect Of Nutrition Education and Mobile Text Messages on Undergraduates Eating Practices and Perception of Risk in Oyo State, Nigeria; The Consumption of Milk, Vegetables and Fruits, Fish, Wholemeal Bread and Fast Food Meals Among 15-Year-Old Teenagers Depending on the BMI Value; The Role of General Practitioners in Re-Building Whole Person Wellness of University Students During Protests in Hong Kong: A Case Study; About the Editors; About the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Israel; Index.

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Book SynopsisMany public health issues date back in history and are still with us to this day. Alcohol and other substance use is just one example of an old problem still with us and when combined with driving in today''s world we get a dangerous combination. Public health efforts in this specific area have resulted in some positive developments and trends, but there is still much work to be done. In this book we have gathered recent international public health research not only about alcohol and driving, but also other public health topics from internationally renowned researchers from around the world, which we hope will be of interest to the readers.

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Book Synopsis"Neurodevelopmental disabilities are a diverse group of chronic disorders that begin at any time during the development process - from conception through completion of adolescence. The impact of such disabilities last throughout an individual''s lifetime.The underlying basis for these disorders lies in fundamental deficits in the developing brain due to genetic, prenatal, perinatal, metabolic, and other factors. Developmental disabilities affect 17% of individuals younger than 18 years of age in the United States. Prevention along with early recognition and intervention is critically important to mitigate the adverse impact of developmental disabilities, both at an individual level and at societal level. Children and adults with disabilities need routinepreventive and acute medical care and access to services similar to those who do not have such disabilities. The quality of life and health outcomes for individuals with disabilities largely depend on the access and adequacy of community-based support systems. With appropriate support, most individuals with disability can maintain relative independence and productive life. In this book we have gathered some recent selected topics on neurodevelopmental disabilities which we hope will be of interest for the reader"--

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Book SynopsisBefore neurons and their role in pain were understood, there have been many explanations to account for pain. Hippocrates (370-460 BCE) believed that it was due to an imbalance in vital fluids and in the 11th century Avicenna (980-1037) theorized that there were a number of feeling senses including touch, pain and titillation. Today we talk about four types of pain: 1) Nociceptive pain: Typically the result of tissue injury, 2) Inflammatory pain: An abnormal inflammation caused by an inappropriate response by the body''s immune system, 3) Neuropathic pain: Pain caused by nerve irritation and 4) Functional pain: Pain without obvious origin. About 20% of adults have chronic pain and 7% of adults have chronic pain that frequently limits life or work activities, which increases with age. In this book we have gathered recent international research on pain and pain management from internationally renowned researchers from around the world, which we hope will be of interest to the reader.

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