In the late 1960s, American society entered a period of rapidly accelerating social change. Certainty that U.S. vast scientific and technical capability would be able to find solutions to all problems began to turn to concern, as organizational efforts were unable to keep pace with new developments in a variety of areas.

The health field, with its focus on the well-being of individuals, felt the impact of these changes particularly strongly. Medicines became more focused on isolated health practices, as the patient's needs were attended to within groups of unrelated biological...