Health in a Fragile State: Science, Sorcery, and Spirit in the Lower Congo Contributor(s): Janzen, John M. (Author) |
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ISBN: 0299325040 ISBN-13: 9780299325046 Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press OUR PRICE: $21.73 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: May 2021 |
Additional Information |
BISAC Categories: - Medical | Health Care Delivery - Social Science | Anthropology - Cultural & Social - History | Africa - Central |
Dewey: 362.109 |
Physical Information: 0.7" H x 6" W x 8.9" (2.25 lbs) 288 pages |
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
Publisher Description: Based on extensive field research in the Manianga region of the Lower Congo, Health in a Fragile State is an anthropological account of public health and health care after the collapse of the Congolese state in the 1980s and 1990s. This work brings into focus John M. Janzen's earlier books on African health and healing, revealing the collaborative effort by local, national, and international agencies to create viable alternative institutions to those that represented the centralized state. This book documents and analyzes the realignment of existing institutions and the creation of new ones that shape health and healing. Janzen explores the manner in which power and information, including science, are legitimized in the preservation and improvement of health. Institutional validity and knowledge empower citizens and health practitioners to gain the upper hand over the region's principal diseases, including malaria, tuberculosis, typhoid, and HIV/AIDS. |