Health, Illness, and Society : An Introduction to Medical Sociology

This engaging text provides a sociological perspective on health, illness, and health care. Serving as an introduction to medical sociology for undergraduate and graduate students, it also presents a summary of the field for medical sociologists and for public health scholars and practitioners. A highlight of the text is its emphasis on the social roots of health and disease and on the impact of social inequality on health disparities and the quality of health care. The book also critically examines health care in the United States and around the world and evaluates the achievements and limitations of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and other recent health care reform efforts. Pedagogical aids including chapter-opening Learning Questions and Health and Illness in the News vignettes and chapter-ending Summary and Key Terms sections. Most chapters also end with a Giving It Some Thought vignette in which students are presented with a hypothetical situation involving a health and society issue and asked to reflect on how they would respond in the situation.This text is accompanied by an ancillary package designed to enhance the learning experience of both instructors and students:The Instructor's Manual provides a chapter outline, student learning objectives, sample syllabus, and suggested online resources. (Coming soon)The Test Bank includes multiple choice, true-false, and essay questions. (Coming soon) This engaging text provides a sociological perspective on health, illness, and health care. Serving as an introduction to medical sociology for undergraduate and graduate students, it also presents a summary of the field for medical sociologists and for public health scholars and practitioners. A highlight of the text is its emphasis on the social roots of health and disease, including the impact of social inequality on health disparities and the quality of health care. The book also critically examines health care in the United States and around the world and evaluates the achievements and limitations of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and other recent health care reform efforts. Pedagogical aids include: "Learning Questions" and "Health and Illness in the News" vignettes open each chapter. Summary and key terms sections help students review each chapter's core concepts. "Giving It Some Thought" vignettes presents students with hypothetical situation involving health and society issues. Book jacket Sociology and the study of health and health care -- A social history of health and medicine -- Health behavior -- Illness behavior and the illness experience -- Social causes of health and health problems -- Global disparities in health and disease -- Medical school and the training of physicians -- Physicians and their interaction with patients -- Other health care providers : conventional and alternative -- Hospitals and other health care settings -- Health and health care in the world's wealthy democracies -- The U.S. health care system -- Health care reform : Obamacare and beyond This is a comprehensive text intended for the medical sociology course that is taught in sociology and allied health departments.