TY - JOUR AU - Garcia, Angela PY - 2010/04/26 Y2 - 2024/03/29 TI - SOCIOLOGY OF THE LANGUAGE OF MEDICINE JF - TRAILS: Teaching Resources and Innovations Library for Sociology JA - TRAILS VL - IS - SE - DO - UR - https://trails.asanet.org/article/view/sociology-of-the-language-of-medicine SP - AB - The purpose of this course is to introduce students to sociological research on interaction among medical staff and patients in medical institutional settings. The course will rely heavily on Workplace studies research, including ethnomethodological and conversation analytic approaches, but will also include symbolic interactionist research using interview data and participant observation. Our goal is to understand how medical interactions work, what types of communication problems emerge and how they can be avoided, and how social status (e.g., social role, gender, ethnicity, age) can affect the medical encounter. Specific topics to be covered in the course include the medical interview, the physical examination, the delivery of diagnostic news, the coordination of activities between doctors, nurses, and other staff members, as well as specific health related issues such as smoking cessation programs, the treatment of diabetes, and AIDS prevention programs. ER -