This handbook equips nurses with the knowledge they need to provide comprehensive, current, evidence–based care to women at all stages of life. Part I focuses on health promotion and illness prevention, including smoking cessation, stress reduction, fitness, nutrition, and prevention of violence and abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, and other lifestyle–related disorders. Part II, organized alphabetically, covers diseases and disorders—both those that affect only women and those that pose unique issues in women. Icons highlight cutting–edge research, alternative and complementary therapies, prevention strategies, concerns of women with disabilities, and needs of special populations. An appendix lists noteworthy women’s health Websites.

This text approaches women's and men's health in a balanced, interactive approach by presenting case studies that link program and policy issues to practical experiences. This text also addresses: global action and advocacy, sexuality, family decisions, factors undermining reproductive health, and controversial contemporary issues.

Racial and ethnic disparities in health care are known to reflect access to care and other issues that arise from differing socioeconomic conditions. There is, however, increasing evidence that even after such differences are accounted for, race and ethnicity remain significant predictors of the quality of health care received. In Unequal Treatment, a panel of experts documents this evidence and explores how persons of color experience the health care environment. The book examines how disparities in treatment may arise in health care systems and looks at aspects of the clinical encounter that may contribute to such disparities. Patients' and providers' attitudes, expectations, and behavior are analyzed. How to intervene? Unequal Treatment offers recommendations for improvements in medical care financing, allocation of care, availability of language translation, community-based care, and other arenas. The committee highlights the potential of cross-cultural education to improve provider-patient communication and offers a detailed look at how to integrate cross-cultural learning within the health professions. The book concludes with recommendations for data collection and research initiatives. Unequal Treatment will be vitally important to health care policymakers, administrators, providers, educators, and students as well as advocates for people of color.