Medicine and Culture: Revised Edition

This book gives a wonderful view of health care in several, seemingly similar, countries. The ideas that how we view pain, healing and the meaning that a physician has in our lives varies wildly from one country to the next. Are all of these examples equally true today as they were 15 years ago, perhaps not. What is very evident, and one can see this as plain as day when living abroad, is that our views about the purpose of medical care in our lives will be greatly dictated by where we are born. Another book that you should read that will greatly compliment Payer's book is Meaning, Medicine and the 'Placebo Effect' by Daniel Moerman. Interestingly, Moerman has a two-page section on Linda Payer's book. This shows how comprehensive a viewpoint this book, Medicine and Culture, had on the implications that culture has on medicine.

Having experienced medical care in five different countries, according to my experience varieties in treatment in different countries are very common. Though former British colonies still retain lots of resemblance to British health system. My only objection to the book is that it needs an update - lumpectomies instead of radical mastectomies are getting more common in US. However, hysterectomy, often unjustified, is still far to common in US with no hope for change in near future. Also, doctors seem to be unable to understand that different countries have different disease statistics even after you bring them articles printed in medical journals proving that you are right. Medicine does not deserve to be called science, IMO.

Very interesting book. I had no expectations at the beginning of the book and read with open interest. Since finishing the book, I have been more aware in my own experience of the agressive nature of some mainstream medical practices here in the United States. The "let's fix this before something might happen" approach is in some instances a real mindset of the establishment and no doubt Big Pharma is a great contributor to this approach. The different medical philosophies and treatments in France, England, and Germany are interesting to note (much less agressive). Enjoyed the book!

A good read. Explains how doctors make their decisions and are often based on our culture. The same medical decisions are handled totally differently in other countries.

This is an interesting book, specially for those who would like to learn more about the influence of culture and social norms on the execution of medicine. However, as the foreword of the book indicates, there are instances where some of the content feels outdated.

Excellent! An interesting look at how culture shapes medical systems and the reasons why the US system of health care is among the most over treated and expensive in the world. I was not surprised at Payer's findings. I have a French doctor friend. I would consider traveling to France for treatment if I could afford it.

i like this book so much that I bought extra copies to loan out to patients.The idea that different cultures approach healthcare differently is both obvious and completely unthought of. Seeing that these varied approaches do not significantly alter outcomes provides tremendous insight into treating patients in alternative ways.I consider this a must read for any health professional and a fascinating read for anyone.

This short book shows how medicine is influenced by culture and how your treatment for a particular disease might change depending on what country you are in. While the data is from the 80s and things have certainly changed, it is still interesting to see the differences as I am sure many of the cultural biases still exist today. It is also an enjoyable read and not as dry as a book with this title might appear.

This book was first published in 1988, reprinted in 1995 and is still in print. "Medicine and Culture: Varieties of Treatment" compares and contrasts the practice of medicine in 4 countries. This is not a book about different health care systems, but rather a book about how differently doctors & patients in these countries apply diagnoses and therapies, and which, often unspoken ideologies are involved.It is less about the different languages in these 4 countries (Germany, France, England, United States of America (USA)) It is more about fundamental cultural differences that have a decisive influence on the perception and assessment of diseases.