Available Open Access under CC-BY-NC licence. How has austerity impacted on health and wellbeing in the UK? Health in Hard Times explores its repercussions for social inequalities in health. The result of five years of research, the book draws on a case study of Stockton-on-Tees in the north-east of England, home to some of the starkest health divides. By placing individual and local experiences in the context of national budget cuts and welfare reforms, it provides a holistic perspective on countrywide inequalities. Edited by a leading expert, this is an important book for anyone seeking to understand one of today’s most significant determinants of health.

Food is fundamental to health and social participation, yet food poverty has increased in the global North. Adopting a realist ontology and taking a comparative case approach, Families and Food in Hard Times addresses the global problem of economic retrenchment and how those most affected are those with the least resources. Based on research carried out with low-income families with children aged 11-15, this timely book examines food poverty in the UK, Portugal and Norway in the decade following the 2008 financial crisis. It examines the resources to which families have access in relation to public policies, local institutions and kinship and friendship networks, and how they intersect. Through ‘thick description’ of families’ everyday lives, it explores the ways in which low income impacts upon practices of household food provisioning, the types of formal and informal support on which families draw to get by, the provision and role of school meals in children’s lives, and the constraints upon families’ social participation involving food. Providing extensive and intensive knowledge concerning the conditions and experiences of low-income parents as they endeavour to feed their families, as well as children’s perspectives of food and eating in the context of low income, the book also draws on the European social science literature on food and families to shed light on the causes and consequences of food poverty in austerity Europe.

This story of class conflict in Victorian England serves as a powerful critique of the social injustices that plagued the Industrial Revolution. Always concerned with issues of class, social injustice, and employment, Dickens shows in Hard Times, written in 1854, a broader concern with the philosophies and economic movements which underlie those issues. Three parallel story lines reflect a broad cross-section of society and its thinking. This edition includes: -A concise introduction that gives the reader important background information -A chronology of the author's life and work -A timeline of significant events that provides the book's historical context -An outline of key themes and plot points to guide the reader's own interpretations -Detailed explanatory notes -Critical analysis, including contemporary and modern perspectives on the work -Discussion questions to promote lively classroom and book group interaction -A list of recommended related books and films to broaden the reader's experience

OPTIMIZED PREDICTIVE MODELS IN HEALTH CARE USING MACHINE LEARNING This book is a comprehensive guide to developing and implementing optimized predictive models in healthcare using machine learning and is a required resource for researchers, healthcare professionals, and students who wish to know more about real-time applications. The book focuses on how humans and computers interact to ever-increasing levels of complexity and simplicity and provides content on the theory of optimized predictive model design, evaluation, and user diversity. Predictive modeling, a field of machine learning, has emerged as a powerful tool in healthcare for identifying high-risk patients, predicting disease progression, and optimizing treatment plans. By leveraging data from various sources, predictive models can help healthcare providers make informed decisions, resulting in better patient outcomes and reduced costs. Other essential features of the book include: provides detailed guidance on data collection and preprocessing, emphasizing the importance of collecting accurate and reliable data; explains how to transform raw data into meaningful features that can be used to improve the accuracy of predictive models; gives a detailed overview of machine learning algorithms for predictive modeling in healthcare, discussing the pros and cons of different algorithms and how to choose the best one for a specific application; emphasizes validating and evaluating predictive models; provides a comprehensive overview of validation and evaluation techniques and how to evaluate the performance of predictive models using a range of metrics; discusses the challenges and limitations of predictive modeling in healthcare; highlights the ethical and legal considerations that must be considered when developing predictive models and the potential biases that can arise in those models. Audience The book will be read by a wide range of professionals who are involved in healthcare, data science, and machine learning.

Tracing your Yorkshire ancestors using the internet has never been easier, with literally millions of records available to explore. But with so much material available, it can be difficult to know how to get started and what records to use. Rachel Bellerby's brand new guide is a follow-up to the best-selling Tracing Your Yorkshire Ancestors and is packed with up-to-date information on finding your Yorkshire forebears online. From the basics of birth, marriage and death, through migration and education, and looking at the tough times such as poverty and ill health, Rachel Bellerby guides us through the thousands of websites available, with tips and advice from family history professionals around Yorkshire. The themed chapters make it easy to decide what information you would like to find out and the best websites to use. With step-by-step guidance on smart searching and time saving tips, this guide has everything you need to enjoy the journey of tracing your Yorkshire ancestors on the internet, wherever in the world you live.

The purpose of the edited collection Families in Economically Hard Times: Experiences and Coping Strategies in Europe is to provide readers with unique sociological knowledge on European families' experiences and behavioural strategies a decade after economic crisis of the 21st century.

About the Author Guy Gray lives in Vacaville, California. He was adopted at birth in a closed adoption. He maintains a good and close relationship with the members of his adopted family. He decided to search for his birth family in 1989 when he was 27. Guy continues to encourage people, giving them permission to do things that they feel are out of reach. Cheryl Ward-Kaiser lives in Salinas, California. She maintains a good relationship with all of her children and grandchildren. Her home has been the setting of a wedding and many functions involving her son and his family. She had no intention of searching for her son until 1991, after being encouraged by Guy. Cheryl also speaks at many venues, including California prisons. Her message of forgiveness is a blessing to many who hear her speak.

Understanding Health Systems and Welfare explores the ways in which we understand health care systems and recommends how individuals, health care providers and society as a whole can best use the resources within the systems for maximum benefit. In this enlightening book, Bent Greve examines health care systems from a multitude of perspectives, considering factors such as demographic changes, the steering of health care systems, the value of preventative measures and the challenges and opportunities presented by technological developments.

This thoroughly revised second edition covers the major areas of research, theory, and practical application in health communication. This textbook takes an in-depth approach to health communication by analyzing and critically evaluating research conducted across multiple paradigmatic perspectives and focusing on translational application of research findings. Using the story of the Montgomery family, a biracial, multigenerational family, and their health experiences as a case study, chapters explore topics including patient–provider communication, health communication in the media, ethical issues, and public health crises. New chapters cover the potential for communication to address discrimination in healthcare settings, health information seeking, social support and caregiving, and the relationship between health and environmental communication. Chapters offer pedagogical features that will prove useful to students and instructors of health communication, such as summary boxes, theory tables, suggestions for in-class activities, discussion questions, and lists of additional resources. Developed for use in advanced undergraduate and master’s level health communication and public health courses, this text represents the breadth and depth of health communication theory and research as it exists today. Online resources for instructors including additional theory tables, PowerPoint slides, test questions and assignments, sample syllabi, and lists of additional resources are available at https://www.routledge.com/9781032100470.