Pragmatism and medical sociology: Three precepts.

While medical sociology has long incorporated insights from pragmatist philosophy, recent contributions call for a more explicit engagement with this tradition. Complementing Greenhalgh and Engebretsen's (2022) call for a pragmatist analysis of public health policymaking and crisis, we systemize medical sociology's engagement with pragmatism. We suggest three precepts of pragmatist philosophy as they relate to medical sociology: First, a focus on consequences in action, or understanding medical phenomena through what is done rather than established definitions; Second, problem solving, or how medical actors move between habit and creativity; And third, negotiation of meaning, or analyzing patient-provider communication through ongoing action and interpretation. Such systematization, we argue, would enrich both new and existing topics in medical sociology, from medicalization to mask-wearing.

[Manfred Pflanz (1923-1980) - A key Protagonist for the Institutionalization of Social Medicine and Medical Sociology in Germany]. / Manfred Pflanz (1923­1980) ­ zentraler Akteur bei der Institutionalisierung von Sozialmedizin und Medizinsoziologie.

Manfred Pflanz, an internist with his focus on social medicine, medical sociology and epidemiology, (1923-1980) played a key role in the institutional integration of social science expertise into medicine in the Federal Republic of Germany during the 1960s and 70 s. The present study, a biographic sketch of Pflanz, describes his work, his programmatic ideas on social medicine and medical sociology, and his activities as an expert consultant in public health for various political entities. This should enable getting an insight into the origins and ramifications, as well as the contemporary programs and international embeddedness of the overlapping fields of social medicine and medical sociology in Germany.

[Sociological Research and Teaching in the Context of Medical Faculties - An Autobiographical Report]. / Soziologische Forschung und Lehre im Kontext medizinischer Fakultäten ­ Ein autobiographischer Rückblick.

With the introduction of medical psychology and medical sociology as examination subjects in the medical curriculum, as enacted by the year 1970 in Germany, medical faculties established professorships and departments for these disciplines. This raised the concern of how the two separate scientific cultures of the social and behavioural sciences and of medicine, rooted in basic sciences, could reconcile their teaching and research activities in a constructive way. It turned out that the quality and the thematic affinity of new research aligning with core medical interests were important preconditions of successful integration of the new disciplines. This paper exemplifies a respective success in case of a scientific development in medical sociology. Based on a theoretical model, a longstanding, internationally collaborating research program analysing social determinants of stress-related disorders resulted in a series of innovative insights. Furthermore, the paper illustrates close links between biographical luck and structural opportunities and constraints, and it emphasizes the important role of committed inter-disciplinary scientific collaboration.

Explaining the health system in a practical way - the use of a simulation game in medical sociology teaching.

Objective: A simulation game is a valuable method for conveying teaching content in a practical way. The aim was to design a teaching module for medical sociology on the subject of "The German health care system" which would convey the contents and connections to the students in a practical way using a simulation game. Project description: In addition to the development of scenarios for the simulation game, role cards for various institutions of the health care system were also produced as a result. The students were given the opportunity beforehand to work on theoretical content regarding the German health care system online (the "flipped classroom method"). In the 90-minute face-to-face event the simulation game was played, followed by a feedback session. The initial impressions of the students were collected. Results: In the 2022 summer semester, a total of 185 students from the 4th pre-clinical semester took part in the seminar. The students were divided into twelve seminars. One scenario was worked on per seminar. The simulation game contributed to a better understanding of the health care system. The students were generally very satisfied with this type of knowledge transfer and thought that this method might well be integrated into teaching in the future. Conclusion: Communicating the health care system through a simulation game is evidently suitable for explaining clearly complex issues and presenting the various interests of the individual institutions. In addition, a simulation game stimulates critical debate and can contribute to imparting theoretical content in teaching medical sociology in a practical way.

Com Ciência e Com Respeito: episódio 11

Por que projetos de pesquisa com metodologias das Ciências Humanas e Sociais precisam de análise ética? Quais os critérios dessas análises? Descubra essa e outras respostas no nosso 11º episódio."

Can a disability studies-medical sociology rapprochement help re-value the work disabled people do within their rehabilitation?

This paper draws attention to the health-related work that disabled people do when engaging with rehabilitation services. Medical sociology has a rich history of looking at the 'illness work' that patients do, while disability studies scholars have explored the cultural value placed upon paid work and the effects on social status of being unable to work. Yet, a longstanding froideur between these two disciplines, which have fundamentally opposed ontologies of illness and disability, means that neither discipline has attended closely to the rehabilitation-related work that disabled people do. The concept of 'adjusting' to illness highlights seemingly irreconcilable disciplinary differences. Yet this article argues that the notion of 'adjustment work' can elucidate the socio-political character of the work disabled people do in their rehabilitation, which could create a more substantial and sustainable dialogue on this subject between disability studies and medical sociology. To make this case, we discuss interview data from the Rights-based Rehabilitation project, which sought to explore disabled people's lived experiences of rehabilitation.

Affect, dis/ability and the pandemic.

The pandemic has heightened anxieties, impacted mental health and threatened to create an overwhelming sense of existential dread. We recognise the material ways in which disabled people have been differentially impacted by Covid-19 and make a case for understanding the affective dimensions of the pandemic. We develop a theoretical approach - cutting across medical sociology and critical disability studies - that understands affect as a social, cultural, relational and psychopolitical phenomenon. We introduce a public engagement project that took place in March and April of 2020 that garnered blogspots from around the world to capture the pandemic's impact on the lives of disabled people. Our data analysis reveals three key affective themes: fragility, anxiety and affirmation. To understand the emotional impacts of Covid-19 upon the lives of disabled people we embed critical analyses of affect in the dual processes of disablism and ableism: the dis/ability complex. We conclude by considering how we might conceive of a post-pandemic recovery that places the health and well-being of disabled people at the centre of proceedings.

Articulating the canon: The sociology of medical education from 1980 to 2000.

An exciting development in the sociology of medical education has been its recent return as a distinct scholarly conversation in medical sociology. During the 1980s and 1990s, the sociology of medical education, an historically prominent subfield in sociology, seemed to disappear from the scholarly conversation despite ongoing development in this area. In this narrative review I describe this "missing period" of sociology of medical education, discussing complementary explanations for why it receded and describing what research activity did take place during those decades. In reviewing this work, I argue that articulating theoretical advances made within sociology of medical education research during these decades allows us to link foundational research from the 1950s and 1960s with the renaissance of this subfield in the early 2000s. Fundamentally, understanding the intellectual history and development of this subfield supports a broader movement to understand the import of studies of medical training for exploring questions of interest in general sociology.

Epistemic injustice as a bridge between medical sociology and disability studies.

This paper explores the potential of the perspective of epistemic injustice to reconcile medical sociology's attention to the micro level of experience and interpersonal exchange, and disability studies' focus on the macro level of oppressive structures. The first part of the paper provides an overview of the concept of epistemic injustice and its key instances-testimonial, hermeneutical, and contributory injustice. We also consider previous applications of the concept in the fields of health care and disability, and we contextualise our investigation by discussing key features of postsocialism from the perspective of epistemic injustice. In the second part, we explore specific epistemic injustices experienced by people who use disability support by drawing on interviews and focus groups conducted with parents of disabled children in present-day Bulgaria. In our conclusion, we revisit our methodological and theoretical points about the potential of epistemic injustice to facilitate mutually beneficial exchanges between medical sociology and disability studies.

Working it out: Will the improved management of leaky bodies in the workplace create a dialogue between medical sociology and disability studies?

This article focuses on the workplace as a significant site of convergence between the disciplines of medical sociology and disability studies. As disability remains on the margins of sociological exploration and theorising relating to health and work, disabled workers remain on the margins of the workforce, subject to disproportionate rates of unemployment, under employment and workplace mistreatment. The article focuses on the experiences of people with 'leaky bodies', focussing specifically on employees who experience troubling menstruation and/or have gynaecological health conditions. It brings together data from three studies conducted between 2017 and 2020; interviews with disabled academics (n = 75), university staff with gynaecological health conditions (n = 23), and key stakeholders in universities (n = 36) (including university executives, line managers and human resources staff). These studies had separate, but linked foci, on the inaccessibility of workplaces, managing gynaecological health conditions at work and supporting disabled people at work respectively. Drawing on the Social Relational Model of disability and theories of embodiment, we explore the experiences and management of workers with leaky bodies in UK University workplaces. Data illustrates how workplace practices undermine embodied experiences of workers with 'leaky' bodies by maintaining workplaces which ignore their material reality. We highlight that addressing embodied needs alongside acknowledging disabled people as an oppressed political category represents a theoretical meeting point for disability studies and medical sociology.

Educação permanente no sistema único de saúde: concepções de profissionais da gestão e dos serviços / Continuing permanent education in the brazilian national health system: conceptions from management and care professionals / Educación continua en el sistema único de salud brasileño: concepciones de los profesionales de gestión y servicios

Este artigo pretende compreender as concepções de profissionais da gestão e dos serviços do Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS) sobre Educação Permanente em Saúde (EPS), bem como seus desafios e potencialidades. Utilizou-se de grupo focal para coleta, seguido de análise lexical do tipo classificação hierárquica descendente com auxílio do software Iramuteq. Os resultados delinearam quatro classes: a) EPS - entendimentos e expectativas; b) entraves à EPS; c) ETSUS e EPS por meio de cursos e capacitações; e d) dispositivos de EPS: potencialidades e desafios. Os participantes apontaram equívocos de entendimentos acerca da EPS ao equipará-la à Educação Continuada (EC) voltada à transferência de conteúdo, com repercussões negativas na prática de EPS. Discute-se o risco em centralizar o responsável pela concretização dessa proposta, que deveria ser coletiva e compartilhada entre diferentes atores. Reivindica-se, portanto, uma produção colaborativa, que possa circular entre os envolvidos, de modo que cada um experimente esse lugar e se aproprie da complexidade de interações propiciadas pela Educação Permanente em Saúde.(AU)

This article aims to understand the conceptions of professionals from the management and services of the Unified Health System (SUS) on Permanent Education in Health (EPS), as well as its challenges and potential. A focus group was used for data collection, followed by a lexical analysis of the descending hierarchical classification type using the Iramuteq software. The results delineated four classes: a) EPS - understandings and expectations; b) obstacles to EPS; c) ETSUS and EPS by courses and training; and d) EPS devices: potentialities and challenges. Participants pointed out misunderstandings about EPS, when equating it with Continuing Education (CE) focused on content transfer, with negative repercussions on EPS practice. The risk of centralizing the person responsible for implementing this proposal, which should be collective and shared among different actors, is discussed. Therefore, a collaborative production is claimed for, which can circulate among those involved, so that each one experiences this place and appropriates the complexity of interactions provided by Permanent Education in Health.(AU)

Este artículo tiene por objetivo comprender las concepciones de los profesionales de la gestión y servicios del Sistema Único de Salud (SUS) sobre Educación Continua en Salud (EPS), así como sus desafíos y potencialidades. Se utilizó un grupo focal para la recolección de datos, seguido por un análisis léxico del tipo clasificación jerárquica descendente con la ayuda del software Iramuteq. Los resultados delinearon cuatro clases: a) EPS: entendimientos y expectativas, b) Barreras para EPS, c) ETSUS y EPS a través de cursos y capacitación, y d) Dispositivos EPS: potencialidades y desafíos. Los participantes informaron que existen malentendidos sobre EPS al equipararla a Educación Continua, con repercusiones negativas en la práctica de EPS, orientada a la transferencia de contenidos. Se discute el riesgo de elegir a un solo organismo como responsable de implementar esta propuesta colectiva, que debería ser colectiva y compartida entre los diferentes actores. Se aboga por un liderazgo colaborativo, que pueda circular entre los involucrados, para que cada uno experimente este lugar y se apropie de la complejidad de interacciones que brinda la Educación Continua en Salud.(AU)

Acesso e aguardo pela estomização segundo pessoas com câncer colorretal: estudo etnográfico / Access and waiting for ostomy according to people with colorectal cancer: an ethnographic study / Acceso y espera para la ostomía según las personas con cáncer colorrectal: un estudio etnográfico

Objetivo: Conhecer o acesso e aguardo pela estomização de pessoas adoecidas por câncer colorretal no nível terciário do Sistema Único de Saúde. Materiais e Métodos: Estudo etnográfico fundamentado na Sociologia da Saúde, com 8 familiares e 14 adoecidos em Centro de Alta Complexidade em Oncologia, Brasil. Os dados foram coletados entre outubro de 2018 a março de 2019, com observação participante e não participante, registro em diário de campo e entrevista semiestruturada. Os depoimentos e notas etnográficas após triangulação foram submetidos a análise indutiva de conteúdo em seis etapas. Resultados: Apreenderam-se "A história do adoecimento entrecortada pelas dificuldades" e "As perdas no processo de paciência-resiliência no percurso". Discussão: Em busca de validações biomédicas foram reportados três tipos de acesso ao sistema médico, assim como os subsentidos "paguei no particular" e atraso diagnóstico mobilizaram via oficial e não oficial no Sistema Único de Saúde. O capital social foi analisado como premente no adoecimento, uma rede de contatos sem a qual o acesso dos usuários é impactado. No nível terciário enquanto aguardam pela estomização desvelou-se a resiliência não como recurso heroico, mas como recurso pessoal e coletivo diante do percurso dificultoso e da semi-reclusão na instituição total onde vivenciam medos, fadiga e dores. Conclusão:O acesso contou com mobilização relacional e uma gama de vias até a internação com parte do percurso na saúde suplementar, já o aguardo pela estomização mitiga a paciência ao passo que torna a resiliência um recurso benéfico na espera pela programação cirúrgica.

Introduction: The access of people with colorectal cancer to surgical treatment with stomization implies a difficult itinerary through the network of care, and when accessing the tertiary level in an apprehensive preoperative waiting. Objetive: To know the access and waiting for stomization of people sick with colorectal cancer at the tertiary level of the Brazilian Unified Health System. Materials and Methods:Ethnographic study based on the Sociology of Health, with 8 relatives and 14 patients in a High Complexity Oncology Center, Brazil. Data were collected between October 2018 to March 2019, with participant and non-participant observation, field diary recording, and semi-structured interview. Statements and ethnographic notes after triangulation were subjected to inductive content analysis in six steps. Results:"The history of illness interspersed with difficulties" and "The losses in the process of patience-resilience along the way" were apprehended. Discussion: Three types of access were reported, as well as the sub-meanings "I paid privately" and the diagnostic delay mobilized by official and unofficial means in the Unified Health System. Social capital is pressing, a network without which users' access is impacted. At the tertiary level while waiting for stomization, resilience was unveiled not as a heroic resource, but as a personal and collective resource. Conclusion: The access counted on relational mobilization and a range of paths to hospitalization with part of the journey in supplementary health, while the waiting for stomization mitigates patience making resilience a beneficial resource in the wait for surgical programming.

Introducción: El acceso de las personas con cáncer colorrectal al tratamiento quirúrgico con estomización implica un difícil itinerario a través de la red asistencial, y al acceder al nivel terciario en una aprensiva espera preoperatoria. Objetivo: Conocer el acceso y el aguante de las personas afectadas por el cáncer colorrectal en el nivel terciario del Sistema Único de Salud. Materiales y Métodos: Estudio etnográfico basado en la Sociología de la Salud, con 8 familiares y 14 pacientes en Centro Oncológico de Alta Complejidad, Brasil. Los datos se recogieron entre octubre de 2018 y marzo de 2019, con observación participante y no participante, registro de diario de campo y entrevista semiestructurada. Los testimonios y las notas etnográficas, tras la triangulación, se sometieron a un análisis de contenido inductivo en seis etapas. Resultados: Se aprende "La historia del adoctrinamiento entrecortado por las dificultades" y "Las pérdidas en el proceso de pacificación-resiliencia en el curso". Discusión: Se reportaron tres tipos de acceso, así como los subsentidos "pagué en el privado" y el atraso diagnóstico se movilizaron vía oficial y no oficial en el Sistema Único de Salud. El capital social es apremiante, una red de contactos sin la cual el acceso de los usuarios se ve afectado. En el nivel terciario, mientras aguantan por la estomatología, la resistencia se revela no como un recurso heroico, sino como un recurso personal y colectivo. Conclusión: El acceso a la movilización relacional y a una gama de vías hasta la internación con parte del curso en la salud suplementaria, ya que la espera por la estomización mitiga la pacificación haciendo de la resiliencia un recurso benéfico en la espera por el programa quirúrgico.

Analytic Advances in Social Networks and Health in the Twenty-First Century.

The study of social networks is increasingly central to health research for medical sociologists and scholars in other fields. Here, we review the innovations in theory, substance, data collection, and methodology that have propelled the study of social networks and health from a niche subfield to the center of larger sociological and scientific debates. In particular, we contextualize the broader history of network analysis and its connections to health research, concentrating on work beginning in the late 1990s, much of it in this journal. Using bibliometric and network visualization approaches, we examine the subfield's evolution over this period in terms of topics, trends, key debates, and core insights. We conclude by reflecting on persistent challenges and areas of innovation shaping the study of social networks and health and its intersection with medical sociology in the coming years.

Spotlight on Age: An Overlooked Construct in Medical Sociology.

Medical sociology gives limited attention to age-a surprising observation given the aging of the population and the fact that age is among the strongest determinants of health. We examine this issue through an analysis of articles published in Journal of Health and Social Behavior (JHSB) and Sociology of Health & Illness (SHI) between 2000 and 2019. One in 10 articles focused on age or aging, with attention increasing over the period. However, the journals differed. More JHSB than SHI articles addressed it, but fewer focused on the latest life stages when frailty often appears. We discuss three dimensions of age that would enrich medical sociology: as a dimension of inequality akin to race and gender with similar health effects, as an institution interacting with the medical one, and as an identity-again, akin to race and gender-through which people process their experiences in ways that affect health.

The Nexus of Physical and Psychological Pain: Consequences for Mortality and Implications for Medical Sociology.

Although physical pain lies at the intersection of biology and social conditions, a sociology of pain is still in its infancy. We seek to show how physical and psychological pain are jointly parts of a common expression of despair, particularly in relation to mortality. Using the 2002-2014 National Health Interview Survey Linked Mortality Files (N = 228,098), we explore sociodemographic differences in the intersection of physical and psychological pain (referred to as the "pain-distress nexus") and its relationship to mortality among adults ages 25 to 64. Results from regression and event history models reveal that differences are large for the combination of the two, pointing to an overlooked aspect of health disparities. The combination of both high distress and high pain is most prevalent and most strongly predictive of mortality among socioeconomically disadvantaged, non-Hispanic whites. These patterns have several implications that medical sociology is well positioned to address.