Re ections Books | Reviews Do something Damned nations Greed, guns, armies and aid Jean Elizabeth Hudson MD CCFP FCFP AUTHOR Samantha Nutt Cancer. PUBLISHER Signal, 75 Sherbourne St, My wife. 5th Floor, , ON M5A 2P9 Husbands. TELEPHONE 647 788-3976 Men. WEBSITE http://mssignal.squarespace.com/ Why? PUBLISHED 2011/240 pp/$29.99 Why did they? Why didn’t they? If only we had gone to ... Her family doctor missed it. OVERALL RATING Very good Her specialist missed it. STRENGTHS Poignant and Did you know there is a specialist in the States who could compelling fi x this? WEAKNESSES None If only the surgeon had operated sooner ... AUDIENCE Health professionals Why did we have to wait? and the general public They said it wouldn’t matter. interested in global health Why? Why didn’t we get more chemotherapy? Why did they stop chemotherapy? Why can’t we try? She’s going to die anyway, why don’t you try? Why aren’t you doing anything? uthor Dr Samantha Nutt’s years of development Nobody cares. Awork in confl ict zones, including Congo, , Nobody listens. Sudan, , and , are chronicled in Damned Nobody respects me. Nations. A public health–trained family physician, Dr In my country, this would never happen. Nutt’s particular area of interest is women’s health. The You’re just letting her die. book presents compelling narratives about the stark This is a death ward. realities faced by citizens in confl ict zones. This is a deathbed. While encouraging participation in global health Nobody comes. initiatives, Dr Nutt also makes an effort to outline the My wife’s dying, do something. potential issues that might arise from aid. The book You doctors are quacks. Don’t patronize me. provides a sobering distillation of the common pitfalls It’s a simple problem, make her nausea go away. that can occur with offi cial development assistance, as I’m fi ne; I don’t need help; just make my wife better. well as the more concerning trends of volunteer tourism I don’t need a social worker. or “voluntourism,” and the proliferation of new non- I don’t need a psychiatrist; there’s nothing wrong with me; governmental organizations lacking appropriate just help my wife. development training, notably in Haiti after the 2010 I don’t trust this system. earthquake. I want another doctor. Dr Nutt fi nishes by outlining practical steps read- I want another hospital. ers can take to address the problems of war and pov- I want another nurse. erty: seek education, become engaged citizens, give I want more tests. to worthy charities, and lobby for improvements to She has no nutrition, do something; feed her. It’s in God’s hands. official development assistance policy. Readers are It isn’t up to you, only God knows. encouraged to evaluate charities thoroughly and to Nobody knows, how do you know? move toward regular, long-term charitable contribu- A miracle will happen. tions rather than 1-time disaster-based giving. Why are you giving up? Damned Nations provides an intimate portrait of war You aren’t God. and empowers readers to take concrete actions in their You’re the doctor, you should know. own communities to address global inequity. I know she’s going to die, do something now. —Natalie Lovesey MD CCFP Dr Hudson is a family physician who works in palliative care at Credit Valley Dr Lovesey is a family physician in London, Ont, and is Associate Director Hospital in Mississauga, Ont. of Local and Marginalized Communities in the Offi ce of Global Health at the Competing interests Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Western None declared in London.

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