This book explores biomedical and sociological theories of aging and their inter-relationship to historical, contemporary and future issues affecting social welfare and older people.

This book provides a comprehensive examination of the complex issues surrounding the regulation of the medical profession. It offers up-to-date information on the current legislative framework and institutional arrangements surrounding the regulation in the United Kingdom. Well organized and written in an accessible way, it offers an insight into key sociological theories surrounding medical regulation. It gives a historically situated analysis of the contemporary relationship between medicine, the state and the public, and an overview of relevant social scientific research. Case studies...

Medical sociology has traditionally been focused on the governance of troublesome social groups, including the unwell, the deviant, and the criminally insane. But recently the discipline has also begun to explore how the state ensures the public is protected from acts of medical malpractice, negligence, and criminality. Against the background of a series of high-profile scandals including the case of Dr. Harold Shipman, who murdered over two hundred of his patients this topical and authoritative book examines how the regulation of doctors has been modernized by the introduction of a quality...