SOCI 1F90 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: Alcoholism, Medicalization, Class Discrimination
Document Summary
True or false: in canada, we have a health care system referred to as socialized medicine. As a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being: cultural/social patterns define health: Female genital mutilation considered a health practice. Thursday, march 16, 2017: cultural/social standards of health change over time: There is historical fluidity to what gets defined as health/healthy. What, at one time, may be defined as an individual behaviour can, at another time, be defined as a medical condition. Medical establishment plays a powerful force in defining what is and is not healthy or an illness: a society"s technology affects people"s health: Improved living standards and advancement in medical technology have sharply reduced mortality rates & rates of contagious diseases. Technology also creates new health issues, for example, by overtaxing the world"s resources, creating health threatening pollution etc: social inequality affects people"s health: Social determinants of health are largely responsible for health inequities.