The invention of patient-centred medicine

Abstract

This article, based on a plenary presentation to the 13th biennial conference of the European Society for Health and Medical Sociology, challenges the implicit theme of the meeting, that radically changing societies have significant impacts on health and well-being. This analysis, it is argued, masks the fact that it is the ways in which we construe health and well-being that makes a major contribution to what we understand by 'radically changing societies' .

Individuals on alert: digital epidemiology and the individualization of surveillance

“…No matter if pregnancy, cancer, stroke or simply a headache – whenever patients encounter a doctor today, they are likely to receive a risk assessment. “Calculating and recalculating risk profiles has become part of the core task of medicine” (Armstrong 2011 , 158). As early as 1995, medical sociologist David Armstrong providently described how this risk-centered medicine differs fundamentally from the previous regime of clinical medicine.…”

Individualisert standardisering?

“…muligheten for individuell, selvstendig handling (Armstrong, 2014), i stedet for å vaere objekter mer eller mindre prisgitt helsepersonells vurderinger og beslutninger. Dette innebaerer ifølge Armstrong (2011) at pasienter har gått fra å tidligere ha sykdom til nå i større grad å erfare/oppleve sykdom. Det legges dermed større vekt på at pasient og lege/helsepersonell i samråd skal komme frem til beslutninger som gjelder pasientens helse.…”

Clínica Médica, Saúde Pública e subjetividade: conversas com David Armstrong

“…In your writings you relates the 'invention' of the neurosis to the development of the Surveillance Medicine and, also, with the General Practitioners' (GP) practice 2,12 . Can you comment on this and the way that GPs have been dealing with neuroses in their clinical practice?…”