For upper-division undergraduate/beginning graduate-level courses in Medical Sociology, and for Behavioral Science courses in schools of Public Health, Medicine, Pharmacy, and Nursing. A comprehensive overview of the most current issues in medical sociology. The standard text in the field, Medical Sociology presents the discipline¿s most recent and relevant ideas, concepts, themes, issues, debates, and research findings. To draw students into the course, author Dr. William Cockerham integrates engaging first-person accounts from patients, physicians, and other health care providers throughout the text. The Thirteenth Edition addresses the current changes stemming from health care reform in the United States, and other issues that reflect the focus of the field today.