Medical sociology in Great Britain

The paper reports on a survey into the present state of medical sociology in Great Britain, describing the developments which have occurred following upon the recommendations in the Todd Report on the teaching of behavioural sciences to undergraduates. Details of existing and proposed courses at each school are given; they reveal the wide variations which exist, in respect of precise specification of educational objectives, course content, affiliation and qualifications of teachers, teaching methods, and curricular time. However, most schools are consciously trying to incorporate this discipline into the syllabus at an early stage. At present several of the provincial schools have more experience of teaching medical sociology than do the London schools, but this difference may soon be lessened. In most cases the subject is taught in close association with social or community medicine, but connexions with psychology and psychiatry are often close. The prospects for this relatively untried subject are good, with new medical schools demonstrating new ways of applying sociology to medicine.