Dimensions of Community-Based Projects in Health Care

This salient reference grounds readers in the theoretical basis and day-to-day practice of community-based health care programs, and their potential as a transformative force in public health. Centering around concepts of self-determination, empowerment, and inclusiveness, the book details the roles of physicians, research, and residents in the transition to self-directed initiatives and greater community control. Community-focused interventions and methods, starting with genuine dialogue between practitioners and residents, are discussed as keys to understanding local voice and worldview, and recognizing residents as active participants and not simply targets of service delivery. And coverage pays careful attention to training issues, including how clinicians can become involved in community-based care without neglecting individual patient needs.

Among the topics covered are:

•          Narrative medicine in the context of community-based practice.
  
•          Qualitative and participatory action research.
  
•           Health committees as a community-based strategy.
  
•          Dialogue, world entry, and community-based intervention.
  
•           Politics of knowledge in community-based work.
  
•          Training physicians with communities.
  

Dimensions of Community-Based Projects in Health Care challenges sociologists, social workers, and public health administrators to look beyond traditional biomedical concepts of care and naturalistic methods of research, and toward more democratic programs, planning, and policy. The partnerships described in these pages reflect a deep commitment to patients’ lives, and to the future of public health.p>

• community-based health care
• community activism
• health activism
• fair access to health services
• holism and community medicine
• qualitative participatory action research
• health committees as a community-based strategy
• politics of community-based work
• community mapping and population medicine
• physician training for community-based health projects
• medical model of community health care
• cultural model of community health care
• primary care and community-based interventions
• alternative approaches to health care
• community-based social services
• community-based health services

• Department of Sociology & Psychology, University of North Texas at Dallas, Dallas, USA

  Steven L. Arxer

• Department of Sociology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, USA

  John W. Murphy

Steven L. Arxer is assistant professor of sociology at the University of North Texas at Dallas. He earned his doctoral degree from the University of Florida. He has published papers in the journals of Humanity & Society and Qualitative Sociology Review and has contributed to several edited volumes, including The Symbolization of Globalization, Development, and Aging (Springer, 2013). His research interests are globalization, NGOs, and gender mainstreaming.

John W. Murphy is professor of sociology at the University of Miami. He received his doctoral degree in 1981 from Ohio State University. His research interests are sociological theory, social philosophy, and globalization. He has published books related to the community mental health movement, the computerization of social service agencies, and contemporary social theory, including The Symbolization of Globalization, Development, and Aging (Springer, 2013).

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