Over 40 years ago, the “first edition” of Donde No Hay Doctor was produced on index cards using a typewriter. All the illustrations were drawn by hand, and typos were corrected in pencil.

Since then, Donde No Hay Doctor has been translated into English, Portuguese, Chinese, and Arabic — over 80 languages altogether, and is considered the most widely used health manual in the world.

Our newest update of Where There Is No Doctor has just been printed. Get your still-warm copy at a discount — 20% off all Hesperian resources — use NewDoctor20 at checkout.

The root causes of what ails us hasn’t changed much in 40 years: poverty, discrimination, and lack of access to healthy food, clean water, and decent housing. But for 40 years, we’ve continually updated our materials to include the most practical short term solutions — medicines, techniques, and technologies — to improve our health, as well as ideas on how to eliminate the root causes through community conversation, organizing, and care.

This updated edition of Where There Is No Doctor includes new recommendations for malaria medication, HIV treatment for pregnant women and their children, and brand-new family planning resources. We also include updated treatments for blood flukes, shigella infection, genital herpes, pneumonia, meningitis, diphtheria, and other severe infections.

Since 1992, we’ve offered two recipes for our Rehydration Drink to include the original “sugary and salty-as-tears” variety and a cereal-based formula to add calories and vitamins in addition to electrolytes.

Even our treatment for Guinea Worm — which we hope you’ll never need to use — has evolved from coaxing the parasitic worm out of the infection site using a stick to an easier, more convenient method using a string tied around the ankle.

As antibiotic resistant bacteria increase, we’re updating medications — and removing drugs that are no longer effective. Our health challenges are changing, and having the most up-to-date information can be lifesaving.  

Grab your new copy of Where There Is No Doctor at 20% off using the code NewDoctor20 at checkout.

And be sure to send your old edition to the recycling bin!