Key issues in contemporary medicine: what can history teach us?

HSTM36202 (10-credit); HSTM36702 (20-credit)

Semester Two, Mondays, 14.00-16.00

Aims

To introduce students to the recent history of health and medicine by focusing on issues that are presently controversial or likely to illuminate future developments; to develop the skills needed to make informed judgements on the basis of historical evidence. To this end students will learn how to reconstruct past developments, using historical sources and appreciating the historical contexts. We will cover a range of issues, from demographic and epidemiological questions, to forms of diagnosis and treatment, pharmaceuticals and medical industries, and the politics and organisation of medical services; we will also range across countries.

Intended Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will:

have gained insights into the histories of some of the key issues in contemporary medicine
be able to mobilise historical evidence for policy debates
know how to find, and assess critically, primary and secondary sources

20 credit unit only:

have undertaken an individual research project and produced, with full scholarly apparatus, a report based on this research

Lecture Content

Introduction to the Contemporary History of Medicine
The Case of Cancers: Incidence, prevention and treatment
Smoking and the New Public Health
Inequality and health
Medicalisation
Doctors and other health professionals
Patients and Activism
Death and Dying
Mental illness and care in the Community
Where Did the NHS Come From?
Where is the NHS Going?

Assessment

10 credit unit (HSTM36202) - 1500 word essay (50%) and a 2 hour examination (50%).

20 credit unit (HSTM36702) - 1500 word essay (25%), a 2 hour examination (25%), and a 3500 word project (50%)

Feedback

Students may ask questions at any time during lectures and seminars. Teaching staff can usually answer specific queries by email or during office hours, and will provide contact details in the course handbook or at lectures. All submitted coursework will be returned with annotations and an assessment sheet explaining the mark awarded.

Prerequisites

None.