The Sociology Of Health And Illness

This reader brings together recent writing on health, illness and health care in contemporary society. It emphasizes the empirical nature of medical sociology and its relationship with the development of sociological theory.

A wide-ranging collection of both classic writings and more recent articles in the sociology of health and illness, this reader is organized into the following sections: * health beliefs and knowledge * inequalities and patterning of health and illness * professional and patient interaction * chronic illness and disability * evaluation and politics in health care. With a thorough introduction which sets the scene for the field as a whole, and section introductions which contextualize each chapter, the reader includes a number of different perspectives on health and illness, is international in scope, and will provide an invaluable resource to students across a wide range of courses in sociology and the social sciences.

The Handbook of the Sociology of Health, Illness & Healing advances the understanding of medical sociology by identifying the most important contemporary challenges to the field and suggesting directions for future inquiry. The editors provide a blueprint for guiding research and teaching agendas for the first quarter of the 21st century. In a series of essays, this volume offers a systematic view of the critical questions that face our understanding of the role of social forces in health, illness and healing. It also provides an overall theoretical framework and asks medical sociologists to consider the implications of taking on new directions and approaches. Such issues may include the importance of multiple levels of influences, the utility of dynamic, life course approaches, the role of culture, the impact of social networks, the importance of fundamental causes approaches, and the influences of state structures and policy making.

Traditionally, medical sociology texts have been written from a medical perspective, focusing primarily on health issues as they have been defined by doctors, and often reading much like health education textbooks. Weitz, instead, adopts a critical perspective, sometimes challenging medical perspectives, sometimes raising broader issues beyond those of interest to the medical world. This perspective, which is more thoroughly sociological, is now more common among instructors than the older medical perspective.

The Sociology of Healthcare, Second Edition explores the impact of current social changes on health, illness and healthcare, and provides an overview of the fundamental concerns in these areas. This new edition features a brand new chapter entitled End of Life which will help health and social care workers to respond with confidence to one of the most difficult and challenging areas of care. The End of Life chapter includes information on changing attitudes to death, theories of death and dying, and palliative care. All chapters have been thoroughly updated to address diversity issues such as gender, ethnicity and disability. In addition, expanded and updated chapters include Childhood and Adolescence and Health Inequalities. The text is further enhanced through the use of case studies that relate theory to professional practice, and discussion questions to aid understanding. Links to websites direct the reader to further information on health, social wellbeing and government policies. This book is essential reading for all students of healthcare including nursing, medicine, midwifery and health studies and for those studying healthcare as part of sociology, social care and social policy degrees. In an age when health policy follows an individualist model of personal responsibility this book by Alan Clarke demonstrates with a vast array of evidence, just how much there is such a thing as society. An excellent overall book.Dr. Stephen Cowden, Senior Lecturer in Social Work, Coventry University

The main purpose of this book is to demonstrate that disease is socially produced and distributed. Becoming sick and unhealthy is not the result of individual misfortune or an accident of nature. It is a consequence of the social, political and economic organization of society. In developing this thesis, the author systematically introduces students to the major sociological explanations of the role and functions of medical explanations of disease. The book situates the student securely in the literature and provides a guide to the strengths and weaknesses of the major sociological approaches. It draws out the essential features of the major sociological contributions and elucidates how an appreciation of the dynamics of class, gender, ethnicity and the sociology of knowledge challenges medical power.

Strohschein/Weitz' The Sociology of Health, Illness, and Health Care in Canada: A Critical Approach, first Canadian edition is the first in its field to take a critical approach, challenging students to use their 'sociological imagination' to question previously taken-for-granted aspects about health, illness, and health care. Comprehensive, current, and thoroughly Canadian, the authors consistently encourage students to acquire for themselves the tools needed to see the world around them in a new way. As one of the largest fields in the discipline, the sociology of health and illness is vibrant, theoretically-rich and diverse. As such, The Sociology of Health, Illness, and Healthcare in Canada: A Critical Approach places nearly equal balance of the three main areas in the field: the social patterning of health and illness, the social construction of health and illness, and the social organization of health care. It introduces students not only to structural functionalism, conflict theory and symbolic interactionism, but also to more recent theories such as Foucaultian theory, postmodernism, Bourdiesian theory and sociology of the body. The text places considerable effort into evaluating and interpreting the most current available research findings; Canadian statistics; and trends in health, creating a coherent 'story' that will engage students and stimulate active learning and independent thinking. The text's authors contextualize the sociology of health, illness, and healthcare in Canada's political, historical, and cultural landscape. At the same time, the authors examine the lessons to be learned by contrasting the Canadian situation with what occurs in the United States and other countries.

Understanding the Sociology of Health continues to offer an easy to read introduction to sociological theories essential to understanding the current health climate. Up-to-date with key policy and research, and including case studies and exercises to critically engage the reader, this book shows how sociology can answer complex questions about health and illness, such as why health inequalities exist. To better help with your studies this book contains: · a global perspective with international examples; · a new chapter on health technologies; · online access to videos of the author discussing key topics as well as recommended further readings; · a glossary, chapter summaries and reflective questions to help you engage with the subject. Though aimed primarily at students on health and social care courses and professions allied to medicine, this textbook provides valuable insights for anyone interested in the social aspects of health.