Sociology 390: Health and Illness
SYLLABUS
Professor: Rosanne Martorella, Ph.D.
Office: Science Building 348
Office Hours: Posted on the door
Phone: 973 720-2388
Fax: 201 - 595-3522
Email:
romartin@frontier.wpunj.edu
Weeks 1 & 2 |
Week 3 |
Weeks 5 & 6 |
Weeks 7 & 8 |
Weeks 10 & 11 |
Week 12 |
Week 13 |
Weeks 14, 15, 16
COURSE OBJECTIVES
- identify the social and cultural aspects of health and illness, and its impact on definitions of health and illness
- analyze the epidemiology of heart disease, cancer, mental health, AIDS, anorexia, and other diseases as they are influenced by family background, gender, education, and social class
- analyze the social risks factors of morbidity such as social class and family background
- examine the sick role in contemporary society
- analyze the impact of families and support networks on patients with long term illness
- discuss the bio-ethical issues in health care today
- examine the health professional and health institutions from the sociological perspective as types of organizations, professional roles and ideologies which may conflict (with special attention to the changing relationship of the doctor patient relationship)
- examine the changing background of physicians as to education, social class, gender and race
- examine the bureaucratization of health care especially with the presence of corporately run health care facilities
- analyze the financing of health care
- identify forces within the health field and society as a whole leading to increased government participation in the delivery of health care
- analyze the changes in the health delivery system, and the structure of Health Maintenance Organizations utilize computer - mediated assignments
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Attention will be on such topics as the social, cultural, political and economic contexts which influence health and illness in contemporary society, the perception and response to physiological symptoms, use of health services, environmental influences on health and illness, occupational health and safety, self-care and social supports and their influence on health and illness.
Attention will also be on the social structure of medicine--the institutions of medicine and their changing forms of organization. The professions of medicine and the interdependent roles (i.e. doctor/patient) will be analyzed as they affect conditions of health and illness.
With the new system of delivery (predominantly in the form of Health Maintenance Organizations), radical changes have occurred in the perceptions of patients and consumers of health care, the relationships to their physicians and health care providers, the length of stay and the type of care they patients receive, and in the financing of health care today.
Certainly the changing technology, bio-ethical issues, ageism, the recruitment of physicians, and the financing of health care will be topics for discussion, analysis, and debate.
Social issues and health care will also be examined and include: poverty and the delivery of health care, patient rights, financial costs of medicine. In addition, more recent impending social problems will be discussed as they impact on the health care system ,and include: the AIDS crisis, drug abuse, and child neglect. Attention is given to an analysis of the current structure of health care maintenance organizations.
Laughing Gas Administered by Physician
ORGANIZATION OF THE COURSE AND REQUIREMENTS:
includes weekly lectures, discussions and computer assignments.
Attendance is mandatory.
There will be two exams and three assignments.
Required Text:
Peter Conrad and Rochelle Kern, Editors,
SOCIOLOGY OF HEALTH AND ILLNESS:
CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES.
New York: St. Martin's Press, l994, 4th edition.
(selected articles only and package)
ASSIGNMENTS
Home Page Analysis - 10% of final grade
New York Times l0% of final grade
Computer Assignment - 20% of final grade
Mid Term - 30% of final grade
Final Exam - 30% of final grade
WEEK 1 and 2 INTRODUCTION:
THE MEDICAL MODEL AND ITS SOCIAL CONTEXT -
(3 lectures)
General orientation:
Review outline, requirements,
and organization of the course.
Establish a Listserv.
Read: Conrad & Kern, Chapter 5
"A Tale of Two States," pp.55-58
(P) Socio-Economics of Health, etc.
See Tables, pp. l7-22.
Film: "Social Impacts of
the New Medical Knowledge"
VCO896 (53 min.)
Film: "Plagues: Origins and History
of the World's Epidemic Diseases."
(60 min)
WEEK 3
MEDICINE AS AN INSTITUTION -
- The sociological perspective;
- Comparative differences
- Criteria and definitions of health and illness
- Institution of medicine
- Gatekeepers of definitions of health
- Changing patterns of illness (long-term disease)
- Changing structure of medicine (HMOs)
- Medical corporate bureaucracy
Read: Chapter 30, C & K, "Issues in Applications of High Cost Medical Technology: The Case of Organ Transplantation," and "Russia's Degenerating Health." (P)Film: "Healing and the Mind" - VC 3674, #1 (60min.)
COMPUTER LAB ASSIGNMENT - Home Page Analysis - Due:__________
Explain New York Times Assignment
WEEKS 5 and 6
FINANCING HEALTH CARE
(4 lectures)
- Economic Costs of Health Care
- Comparative Data
- Twenty Year Trends
- The Future
Read: Chapter 23, C & K,
"The Commercial Edge and the Accommodation of Insurance"
Chapter 35 & 36
WEEKS 7 AND 8
SOCIAL EPIDEMIOLOGY
SOCIAL CLASS; GENDER; INCOME AND RACE
- Occupation and Health and Illness
- The social causes of illness
- Socio-economic variables of health and illness
- Work and stress; occupational hazards
- The environment
- Gender and ideology
- Sexism, racism and health care
- Women and obesity
- Longevity
- Class and mental illness
- Class and obesity
- Poverty and health care utilization, etc.
Read: Chapter l0, C & K, "Anorexia Nervosa in Context," pp. 24-35
Chapter 9, C & K, "Social Class and Cardiovascular
Disease: The Contribution of Work" and (P)
Film: "Wasting Away: Anorexia & Bulimia"
SOCIAL EPIDEMIOLOGY (Occupation and Stress)
Film: Stress and the Immune Function" (26 min) VC l33l) and
"Stress Management" (20 min) VC 3423
MIDTERM
Review and Discuss Computer Assignment
SICK ROLE AND SOCIETY
- Role expectations
- Doctor/patient relationship
- Surrogate sick role partner and social support systems
- Communication barriers and role conflicts; malpractice,
- Breast cancer (distribution, prognosis, social factors)
Film: Anatomy of an Illness - Reflection on Healing & Regeneration
Critical Illness (Dukane)
"Healing of the Mind" vc3674,#1
WEEK 10 and 11
(four lectures)
THE CANCER PATIENT
- Chronic illness,
- Importance of social support
- Cancer trends and survival
Films:
"Purple Breasts" and "The Power to Choose"
WEEK 12 - HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL
- Professional prestige vs. patient dependency
- Malpractice
- Identity conflicts
- Cultural and class difference
Read: pp. 167-74; 186-198
Handout material in your package
Film: "The Making of a Doctor"
WEEK 13 - CRITICAL ISSUES, BIO ETHICS,
WEEK 14 - CORPORATE BUREAUCRACY AND THE FUTURE
OF MEDICINE
WEEK 15 - Presentations of Computer Assignments
WEEK 16 - Final Exam
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