The Word as Scalpel: A History of Medical Sociology

by Samuel W. Bloom

Book Overview

Medical Sociology is now an established subdiscipline in both medicine and sociology. This book traces the intellectual and institutional evolution of the field in relation to antecendents of the past 2000 years and developments in American sociology and medicine since the turn of the century. Drawing on his own experience as a participant and witness, Bloom provides an engaging account of the ongoing search for knowledge about the relationship between...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195072324
• ISBN13: 9780195072327
• Release Date: May 2002
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 1.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 9.3" x 6.4"

Customer Reviews

Praise for THE WORD AS SCALPEL

"Sam Bloom has drawn on his own rich fifty year experience and his wise insights to provide an interpretation of historical events that intertwine the history of medical sociology with changes in medical science and education, with the changing economics, politics and practices of health care, with shifting social values, and with the changing nature, status and major concerns of sociology. It is a challenging task and Sam Bloom brings it off beautifully."Robert Straus, Professor Emeritus, College of Medicine, University of Kentucky"A richly documented, enlightening, masterly account of the diverse antecedents of medical sociology before and after World War II, with its eventual establishment as a formal sub-specialty of sociology. Fills a major gap in the history of the social sciences. Highly recommended for anyone interested in professionalization, sociology, and social science and medicine."Rosemary A. Stevens, Professor of Sociology of Science, University of Pennsylvania"An illuminating, caring, and concerned work that not only provides knowledge and understanding of medical sociology as an intellectual discipline, but also of its interrelationship with the unfolding of medicine and medical education, and of health and illness in 20th century American society."Renee C. Fox, Professor Emerita of Sociology, University of Pennsylvania"As one of the key early leaders of the medical sociology field, Sam Bloom offers us a fascinating combination of institutional history and personal experience. We can feel ourselves in the rooms of universities, hospitals, medical schools, and government agencies where key studies were designed and new programs initiated." Phil Brown, Professor of Sociology, Brown University"This scholarly and deeply researched history of medical sociology will inform readers both within the field and interested observers. An essential basis for any future study of the field and a historical source unlikely to be surpassed."David Mechanic, Professor of Behavioral Sciences, Rutgers University"This extraordinary book by one of the nation's leading medical sociologists is more than an institutional history of a field. Rather it is an intellectual and personal voyage that illuminates the basis for a discipline and a roadmap for understanding the principles that under gird its members. Beautifully and clearly written."David Rosner, Professor of History and Public Health, Columbia University