Introduction

Dr. Sankalpa Satapathy

Objective

The subject seeks to provide students with a

conceptual and theoretical foundation for

studying the ways in which social and cultural

factors influence the incidence and understanding

of, and societies' responses to, health and illness.

Interdisciplinary
• Combines courses in Population health,
Demography, Anthropology, Geography, History,
Philosophy, Political Studies, Sociology, Economics,
Law, Environmental health, Occupational health,
Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Nutrition, Health
education and Mental health etc.
Importance

• Health has a social component

• Illness has social causes and social consequences

• Understanding community

• Importance of social environment

Common terms

• Society

• Social institutions

• Social structure

• Social class

• Systemic discrimination
Common terms

• Class conflict

• Division of labor

• Ascribed status

• Gender and gender roles

• Social status
Sociological Perspectives

• Structural Functionalism

• Conflict Perspective

• Symbolic Interactionism
Sociological Perspectives on Health

• Structural Functionalism

• Conflict Perspective

• Symbolic Interactionism
Structural Functionalism

• Parsons’s “Sick role”

• Hierarchical physician patient relationship

• Criticism
Conflict Perspective

• Society’s inequities reproduced in our health and

health care

• Control of physicians over medicine and social

problems

• Criticism
Symbolic Interactionism

• Social construction

• Interaction b/w patient and physician

• Criticism
Definitions

• Health : physical, mental, and social well-being

• Medicine: social institution

• Healthcare: provision of medical services

Thank you