Health care policy traditionally views lay people as health care consumers. This groundbreaking book offers evidence of a new perspective: lay people are the primary providers of health care. The family, organized religion, voluntary associations, neighborhoods, and ethnic and racial groups act as a buffer between the individual and the large institutions of modern society. These small social groups or "mediating structures" comprise the hidden non-professional health care system which is Cost Effective, Integral, and Enduring.

Frequently in partnership, but sometimes at odds, religious institutions and public health institutions work to improve the well-being of their communities. There is increasing awareness among public health professionals and the general public that the social conditions of poverty, lack of education, income inequality, poor working conditions, and experiences of discrimination play a dominant role in determining health status. But this broad view of the social determinants of health has largely ignored the role of religious practices and institutions in shaping the life conditions of billions...

Frequently in partnership, but sometimes at odds, religious institutions and public health institutions work to improve the well-being of their communities. There is increasing awareness among public health professionals and the general public that the social conditions of poverty, lack of education, income inequality, poor working conditions, and experiences of discrimination play a dominant role in determining health status. But this broad view of the social determinants of health has largely ignored the role of religious practices and institutions in shaping the life conditions of billions...