Doctors, Patients, and Society: Power and Authority in Medical Care

Maria Pàez-Victor was a sociologist and childbirth educator in Toronto.

This book is a collection of papers presented at an interdisciplinary workshop at the Calgary Institute for the Humanities in May 1980. The three broad issues covered are: the physician-patient relationship, the allocation of responsibility among doctors and nurses, and the political and social framework of the health care system. The first set of essays is concerned with the moral and legal aspects of the physician-patient relationship. The link between knowledge and power is examined as well as the moral dilemmas posed by medical technology. These initial essays would alone justify this publication as they represent a quest for moral guidelines for health professionals. Indeed, the essays throughout are equal to these. The second set of papers examines the historical evolution of the modern medical authority, attempting to find the means and the reasons for the consolidation of the medical profession as we know it today. By glimpsing into history we appreciate the fact that people before us grappled with the policy problems that are still with us today: how to discern the needs of the poor and sick, the debate over home care vs. hospital care, and government’s role in financing health costs and providing for public health measures. The third set of essays is concerned with the cultural framework within which health and illness occur. Cultural values that do not conform to the values of modern medical practice are mostly ignored, to the detriment of the patient’s health, values, and life. The fourth set of essays discusses the issue of the responsibility and accountability of nurses and physicians, and health organizations. The final papers are concerned with Canada’s public health policies. Examined are: historical attitudes to public health, the medical profession’s resistance to fee regulation by government, the relationship between different levels of government and the medical professions, the relative effectiveness of therapeutic medicine in view of genetic and environmental determinants of health, and the medicalization of social problems. To anyone who is interested in the field of health, in whatever capacity, this book will constitute stimulating and valuable reading.