Reimagining Social Medicine from the South

Abigail H. Neely's book "Reimagining Social Medicine from the South" explores the possibilities and limitations of social medicine at the Pholela Community Health Centre in South Africa, highlighting the impact of systemic racial inequality and witchcraft illnesses on the program's success. She challenges global health practitioners to recognize the multiple worlds and actors that shape health and healing in Africa and beyond.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 192 pages
Publication date: 27 August 2021
Publisher: Duke University Press

In her groundbreaking book, "Reimagining Social Medicine from the South," Abigail H. Neely delves into the possibilities and limitations of social medicine at one of its most significant origin sites: the Pholela Community Health Centre (PCHC) in South Africa. The PCHC's unwavering focus on both medical and social factors of health led to remarkable success, showcasing the potential of social medicine in addressing health disparities. However, the systemic racial inequality prevalent in South Africa posed significant challenges to the work of the health center, while witchcraft illnesses posed a formidable threat to a program rooted in scientific principles. Neely's insightful interrogation of the "social" in social medicine sheds light on the complexities that shaped Pholela's successes and failures. She highlights the shortcomings of the social sciences employed by the PCHC, which failed to account for the vital roles that the residents and their environment played in the development and success of its program. At the same time, the PCHC's reliance on biomedicine prevented it from recognizing the profound impact of witchcraft illnesses on health and the social relationships that gave rise to these illnesses. By rewriting the story of social medicine from Pholela, Neely challenges global health practitioners to acknowledge the diverse worlds and actors that shape health and healing in Africa and beyond.

In her groundbreaking book, "Reimagining Social Medicine from the South," Abigail H. Neely delves into the possibilities and limitations of social medicine at one of its most significant origin sites: the Pholela Community Health Centre (PCHC) in South Africa. The PCHC's unwavering focus on both medical and social factors of health led to remarkable success, showcasing the potential of social medicine in addressing health disparities. However, the systemic racial inequality prevalent in South Africa posed significant challenges to the work of the health center, while witchcraft illnesses posed a formidable threat to a program rooted in scientific principles. Neely's insightful interrogation of the "social" in social medicine sheds light on the complexities that shaped Pholela's successes and failures. She highlights the shortcomings of the social sciences employed by the PCHC, which failed to account for the vital roles that the residents and their environment played in the development and success of its program. At the same time, the PCHC's reliance on biomedicine prevented it from recognizing the profound impact of witchcraft illnesses on health and the social relationships that gave rise health to these illnesses. By rewriting the story of social medicine from Pholela, Neely challenges global health practitioners to acknowledge the diverse worlds and actors that shape health and healing in Africa and beyond.

Weight: 292g
Dimension: 151 x 229 x 15 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781478014270