Suchergebnisse

Intro -- Series Editors' Preface -- Contents -- Notes on Contributors -- List of Figures -- 1: Introduction: Reconceptualising Complementary and Alternative Medicine as Knowledge Production and Social Transformation -- Introduction -- Current Sociological Understandings of CAM -- Reconceptualising CAM as Knowledge Production and Social Transformation: Engaging with STS -- Boundary Work and Social Worlds Frameworks in the Study of CAM -- CAM and Actor-Network Theory: Exploring Materiality and Relationality -- CAM as Epistemic Object -- Overview of the Volume -- Conclusion -- References -- Part I: Defining CAM: Boundaries Between and Within CAM and Biomedicine -- 2: Evidence-Based Alternative, 'Slanted Eyes' and Electric Circuits: Doing Chinese Medicine in the Post/Socialist Czech Republic -- Medical Acupuncture: Biomedicalising CM During Socialism -- Traditional CM: Cultivating Autonomy and Care with 'Slanted Eyes' -- TCM: Establishing an 'Evidence-Based' Alternative -- Conclusion -- References -- 3: The Incompatibility Between Social Worlds in Complementary and Alternative Medicine: The Case of Therapeutic Touch -- Introduction -- Theoretical and Methodological Issues -- Social Worlds in the Controversy over Therapeutic Touch -- Scepticism -- Medicine -- Nursing Research -- Nursing -- Therapeutic Touch -- Conclusion -- References -- 4: Qigong in Three Social Worlds: National Treasure, Social Signifier, or Breathing Exercise? -- Introduction -- Research Material and Methods -- Qigong as National Treasure -- Qigong as Social Signifier -- Qigong as Breathing Exercise -- Discussion -- References -- Part II: Doing CAM in Different Contexts: Politics, Regulation and Materiality.

In Alternative Medicine and Ethics, leading bioethicists and philosophers examine and debate the question of how the health care system should deal with using complimentary and alternative medicines. The distinguished authorities writing here both defend and criticize alternative medicine, with some arguing that the medical system should change substantially in order to accommodate alternative medicine, and others claiming that virtually all alternative treatments are worthless. In the heat of the debate many fundamental issues are raised concerning our health care system, among them the questions of therapeutic effectiveness, media truthfulness, the patient's freedom to choose among treatment options, health insurance coverage, the ability of the current healthcare delivery system to meet patients' needs, and government approval of alternative medicines. The issues raised in Alternative Medicine and Ethics pose numerous challenges to the healthcare delivery system that presently dominates in the United States and Canada. The points made here will help bioethicists, medical professionals, managers, and public policy experts to better understand the fundamental nature of our health care system and better meet patients' needs

(A reprint of an article originally published in Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, 2000, 43, 4, 502.518.) Considers the orthodox medicine (or "modern," "scientific," "biomedicine") of the 20th century within its broader historical & cultural context & compares the "classical" with the "20th-century" paradigm. The practice of medicine is traced from its origins in 5th-century BCE Greece & the origins of the notion of "alternative" medicine are delineated. The classical & 20th-century paradigms are compared in terms of their conceptualizations of health, sickness, diagnosis, therapy, theory, & the doctor-patient relationship, highlighting differences in their ideas on the human body & its relationship to the soul, causality, disease etiology, treatment vs outcome, prevention, & correspondence between medical theories & practice. The relationship between scientific & what is now called "alternative" medicine is explored, & implications for 21st-century medical care are considered. 21 References. K. Hyatt Stewart

Native American traditional medicine is alive & vibrant in many North American societies, although not all. These traditions coexist with other forms of healing, & the particular patterns of existence, interaction, & meaning vary among groups. The literature examining these issues is likewise diverse. This article explores, through a selective review of the recent literature, how social & behavioral scientists, among others, are focusing their investigations of traditional & alternative medicine in Native American communities of the United States & Canada today. Issues include how native practices have persisted & changed, how they are being used (e.g., in framing cultural identity), & how they interact with other systems, especially biomedicine & faith healing. 75 References. [Copyright 2002 Sage Publications, Inc.]