[SydPhil] REMINDER: HPS Research Seminar - today 6pm

[Debbie Castle]

Dear All

This is a reminder of today's HPS Research Seminar at 6pm. It will be presented by:

GEORGE WEISZ (McGill)

"Re-inventing Chronic Disease in the Twentieth Century"

The term "chronic" has existed for many centuries to describe illnesses that unfold slowly, in contrast to acute diseases that either kill or disappear quickly. But in the early 20th century, "chronic disease" took on an entirely new meaning; it was reframed as a social problem that demanded significant reform of health care institutions. It has been argued that this development was a natural response to what has been called the "demographic transition"-that the decline in infectious diseases, allowed diseases like cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease to assume new significance. While this view has some validity, it ignores the fact that the process occurred almost exclusively in the United States until about 1950s when chronic disease appeared on a limited scale in Britain as part of an effort to deal with the institutionalized elderly. The term did not assume policy significance in France until the 21st century. In the first part of this talk I shall try to explain why the term emerged as a useful category of thought and action in the American health arena between 1920 and 1960 and how "objective" data was produced that confirmed the existence of a "chronic disease plague". The second section of the talk will focus on Britain where institutional conditions made the notion of chronic disease synonymous with services for the elderly and a secondary aspect of policy. All this changed in the 21st century when Britain like almost every developed country began experimenting with managed chronic care.

Where: NEW LAW ANNEX SEMINAR ROOM 442, CAMPERDOWN CAMPUS
When : MONDAY 27TH MAY, FROM 6PM TO APPROX 7.30PM


Chloe (in for Debbie)
Debbie Castle
Administration Officer
Unit for History and Philosophy of Science
Room 441, Carslaw Building F07| THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY   NSW  2006
T: + 61 2  9351 4226 E: debbie.castle at sydney.edu.au
OFFICE HOURS: MONDAY, TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY 9AM TO 4.30PM
www.sydney.edu.au/science/hps

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