society and the medical profession?!?

[natty]

hi guys, just lookign for a few suggestions to a research project. all i've been told is to explore 'the relationship between the medical profession and society in the uk' and i haven't a clue where to start as the area covered appears so vast.

any ideas greatly appreciated.

[woofgang]

well how about starting with the good old media, looking at how doctors are and have ben portrayed on film and in books and more recently on TV

[Bonzo 2000]

Im interested in the perceived standing in the community enjoyed by the GP. He was traditionally always regarded a a man (or woman) beyond reproach, who would command the respect of the whole community. I think that has largely changed - is it down to rogue doctors like Shipman, is there less respect in general, are doctor now perceived as easy candidates for a bit of abuse, like junior hospital docs clocking up 80 hour weeks? Could be an interesting study, nat

[Kit]

Certainly is an interesting question - it was a major part of my Masters thesis. It goes far further back than Shipman. Things to think about are: mass education has reduced the status of doctors, lawyers and the clergy, who at one time were the only "educated" people in the community. Patients now often know more about their conditions than doctors do, as they have time and access to resources such as the Internet, libraries etc. The doctor's role is therefore changing.<br> Another thing to look at is how people view health - patients and the medical profession often define "health" in different ways, eg some people who are not "healthy" (where health is defined as absence of disease) nevertheless consider themselves to be healthy because they cope well with their condition. On the other hand, some patients may not feel that they are "better" because they are not completely symptom free, and may have unrealistic expectations of treatment.<br> The Internet has had a tremendous influence, and there is a lot written about the value of various medical websites. In some research projects, doctors have pretended to be patients, and submitted questions to these sites - only a relatively small proportion give the right advice.<br> Good luck with it - it's a fascinating subject and opens up all sorts of cans of worms!