Cover -- Title -- Copyright -- Contents -- List of Figures and Tables -- Foreword -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- Organization and Content -- Issues and Perspectives -- 1. The Application of Social Science to Medical Practice -- The Quarantine of Scientific Data Thought Applicable to Medical Practice -- The Social Sciences Working "With" Medicine -- Functions of the Clinically Applied Social Scientist -- Generating Applicable Sociomedical Data -- Conclusion -- Notes -- 2. Reconciling the Agendas of Physicians and Patients -- What Needs to Be Done When Doctor Meets Patient? -- What Does the Patient Want from the Clinical Encounter? -- Implications of Discrepant Doctor-Patient Agendas -- Pressures on Physicians -- Patient Satisfaction and Health Outcomes -- Future Research and Practice -- Changes in Education and Practice -- 3. The Changing Pattern of Physician-Patient Interaction -- Models of Physician-Patient Interaction -- Patients as Consumers -- Modernity -- Implications for Physician Status and Professional Autonomy -- Conclusion -- The Social Context of Medical Practice -- 4. From Bedside to Bench: The Historical Development of the Doctor-Patient Relationship -- The Physician's Dichotomy: Artist or Scientist ? -- Humoral Physiology: Emphasis on the Individual Patient -- Discovery of Hidden Causes Shifts Bedside Focus -- Christianity and Medical Theory -- Medicine as Part of University Curriculum -- Gender-Based Theories of Doctor-Patient Relationship -- Race- and Class-Based Theories of Treatment -- Superimposing Science on Individual Symptoms -- Conclusion -- Notes -- 5. High Tech vs "High Touch": The Impact of Medical Technology on Patient Care -- Case Studies of Medical Instruments -- Instruments and the Doctor-Patient Relationship -- How Instruments Transformed Medicine -- Notes.

6. Contractual Arrangements, Financial Incentives, and Physician-Patient Relationships -- Principal-Agent Relationships -- Contractual Arrangements and Incentives -- Alternative Forms of Compensation: Empirical Studies -- Physicians' Ownership Interests -- Monitoring Effort and Peer Review -- Conclusion -- Notes -- 7. Fear of Malpractice Litigation, the Risk Management Industry, and the Clinical Encounter -- The Risk Management Industry -- Malpractice, Medical Uncertainty, and Professional Esteem -- Relationship of Injuries to Claims -- An Epidemic of Injuries or of Litigation? -- How Risk Management Affects the Patient Encounter -- Stereotypes of the Suit-Prone Patient -- Inaccuracy of Stereotypes -- Differential Treatment Based on Fear of Lawsuits -- Malpractice Claims: The View from Both Sides -- Are Risk Managers on the Mark? -- Future Research -- Ethical Dilemmas -- Notes -- Communicating with Patients and Caregivers -- 8. Incomplete Narratives of Aging and Social Problems in Routine Medical Encounters -- Conceptual Approach, Definitions, and Method -- Encounter A: Independence and Physical Decline -- Encounter B: Retirement and Death of a Spouse -- Conclusions: Aging and the Discourse of Medicine -- 9. Family-Centered Geriatric Medical Care -- Family Caregivers: What Do We Know? -- The Need for a Clinical Database -- The Evolving Three-Way Relationship -- Pitfalls Associated with Family-Centered Care -- Comment -- 10. Parenting a Disabled Child: Problems in Interacting with Health Professionals -- Parent-Professional Encounters as Stress -- The Clinical Perspective -- The Parental Perspective -- Problems in Information Sharing by the Professional -- Suggestions for Improvement -- Adopting a Social Systems Perspective -- 11. Quality-of-Life and End-Of-Life Decisions for Older Patients -- Case Histories -- The Meaning of Quality of Life.

Empirical Data Supporting Concerns about the Use of Quality of Life in Medical Decision Making -- Current and Future Applications of Quality of Life in Medical Decision Making -- Conclusions and Caveats -- Future Educational Considerations -- 12. The Role of Patient Education in Doctor-Patient Relationships -- Early Findings -- Cultural Variations -- Recent Research Findings -- Cross-cultural Comparisons -- Discussion -- 13. Teaching Communication Skills to Medical Students and House Officers: An Integrated Approach -- Doctor-Patient Communication in its Historical Context -- From Anecdote to Outcome: Recent Developments in Doctor-Patient Communication Research -- Can Caring Be Taught as a Clinical Communication Skill? -- Conclusions -- Concluding Commentary -- 14. Toward a Social Medicine -- Balancing the Art and Science of Medicine -- Patient-Physician Communication: Variations on a Theme -- Toward a Social Medicine -- Notes -- References -- Contributors -- Author Index -- Subject Index.