The medical school as a social organization

The paper reviews sociological research on the medical school as a social organization from the 1950s to the present. Despite significant differences between societies in the organization of medical education, such research has been largely confined to the USA. Some reasons for this are suggested. Ways in which the climate and organization of medical schools--at least in Great Britain--have changed in the recent past are described as well as reasons for such changes. It is argued that more research into these processes and into the organizational obstacles to change, including cross-national studies, are needed.