HEALTH AND MEDICINE Health -- a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being. It is as much a social as a biological issue What is defined as health and illness is influenced by culture.

Society and health 1.People judge their health in relation to others they know. 2.People define as “healthy” what they think of as morally good. 3.Cultural standards of health change over time. 4.Health relates to a society’s technology. 5.Health relates to social inequality

Health Issues in the U.S. Social epidemiology -- the study of how health and disease are distributed throughout a society’s population. a) Age and sex b) Social class c) Race c) Regional differences

Eating disorder --an intense involvement in dieting or other forms of weight control in order to become very thin. Cigarette smoking -- the most serious preventable health hazard. Sexually transmitted diseases: more than fifty diseases.

Ethical issues: Confronting death. 1.When is a person dead? 2. Do people have a right to die? 3.What about euthanasia, assisting in the death of a person suffering from an incurable disease?

Medicine Medicine -- a social institution concerned with combating disease and improving health. Holistic medicine-- emphasizes prevention of illness and takes account of the person’s entire physical and social environment.

Its founded on: 1.Patients are people. 2.Responsibility, not dependency. 3.Personal treatment.

Paying for health: A global View Medicine in socialist societies: a) The People’s Republic of China. b) The former Soviet Union. Medicine in capitalist societies Sweden-- system described as socialized medicine -- government owns and operates most medical facilities and employs most physicians.

United States direct-fee system -- patients pay directly for the services of physicians and hospitals. Three ways of paying: Private insurance programs. Public insurance programs-Medicare and Medicaid. Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs)

Theoretical Analyses of Medicine Structural-functional analysis Views illness as a social dysfunction People respond to illness by assuming the sick role -- patterns of behavior defined as appropriate for people who are ill.

The sick role has three characteristics: a) Illness suspends routine responsibilities. b) A sick person must want to be well. c) An ailing person must seek competent help. The physician’s role.

Symbolic-interaction analysis. The social construction of illness. The social construction of treatment.

Social Conflict Analysis Draws a connection between health and social inequality and, ties medicine to the operation of capitalism. 1.The access issue. 2.The profit motive. 3.Medicine as politics.