The three major sociological orientations are functionalist, conflict, and interactions; we will discuss each perspective as it pertains to the health care industry. Discuss the role social class plays in access to adequate health care and health inequality. For example, ethnic minorities are more likely to live in poorer conditions. The great debate in sociology has been on the relative merits and role of quantitative versus qualitative approaches. Cooney, A., Dowling, M., Gannon, M. E., Dempsey, L., & Murphy, K. (2014). Merton, R. K. (1957). That position has gone to psychology, where the emphasis on individual behavior resonates more with a biomedical model. However, the field has developed into two groups: those (largely within academic settings) which focus on the sociology of medicine; and those (primarily in schools of public health and governmental institutions) which focus on the application of sociology to medicine. Medical sociologists state that while diseases and disabilities exist biologically, some are considered worse than others because of the added 'layer' of socio-cultural stigmas or negative perceptions. Structural explanations suggest that unemployment, poverty, stress, frustration, and poorer physical health may make it more likely for working-class people to suffer from mental illnesses. 241258). The sociology of health and illness studies the interaction between society and health. What is the relationship between sociology health and disease? New England Journal of Medicine, 357(4), 370379. However, the date of retrieval is often important. Those of South Asian origin have higher rates of heart disease and stroke. In addition, working-class people generally make 'riskier' lifestyle choices such as having poor diets, smoking, and less exercise. Health and Sociology | Distance Learning Systems (DLSI) Sociology helps us better understand the world, society and social institutions, and people around us. The literature on the social determinants of mental health has focused on a variety of social statuses, such as socioeconomic status, gender, age, and race/ethnicity. What are the examples of pelagic organisms? Social medicine helps to describe problems, analyze their nature and suggest or prescribe solutions to them; medical sociology however, is pre-occupied with finding insight into health problems as well as making contributions to theoretical formulations. SO1050 week 1 discussion.docx - Complete your Initial Post Healthcare and Disabilities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Working in the field of healthcare involves the necessity for close collaboration with people from different cultural backgrounds, and this is why there are numerous links between healthcare and sociology. 19.1. In short, inequalities in health are directly related to social and economic inequalities.