Summary of content

This module analyses the main themes in the social, cultural and political history of British and American medicine during the 'long nineteenth century' (c. 1780-1914). Particular emphasis is placed on the historiographical debates concerning the significance of various and changing forms of patient/practitioner interaction. Emphasis is also placed on understanding the shifts in both the institutional and organisational bases for medical practice and the relationship between medicine, the public and the state. Throughout, the comparative perspective is adopted to develop students' awareness of the similarities and differences of patient/practitioner experiences in two countries that shared many similarities, but which developed very different health care systems in the twentieth century.

Module structure

Assessment methods