Abstract 

This chapter discusses problems and prospects of studying Medical Sociology in Bangladesh. This chapter examines some pioneering work of Medical Sociologists on health and illness and offers a critical insight into understanding the social structural influences on the overall health discourses of a country. It focuses on the emerging and re-emerging diseases from global and local perspectives and explores sociological viewpoints engaging with the social realities of emerging diseases and their medical, social, and economic dimensions. This authoritative chapter has addressed how disease, illness, and discourses surrounding health and medicine are socially constructed. It proposes a theoretical framework that fits well in the context of Bangladesh and shows how the health challenges could be seriously related to national development agendas and goals. It also addresses many unresolved structural problems in the health system and provides an analysis of overall health scenarios of Bangladesh. The author critically examines why Sociologists need to engage theoretically and empirically on the social impact of issues related to communicable and non-communicable diseases. The chapter also examines the limitations of public health initiatives in Bangladesh and focuses on the relevance of Medical Sociology for understanding the social impacts of emerging diseases, focusing on a range of sociological theories and concepts. The author argues that, although researchers and practitioners from public health, epidemiology, and medicine currently dominate public discussions, the field of medical sociology is uniquely qualified to assess the social causes and social consequences of overall health and emerging diseases. Finally, the chapter presents key insights from the existing health policies of Bangladesh which are especially germane to the health challenges during this neo-liberal time and raises the possibilities for future research.

Keywords 

Medical Sociology   Health Discourses   Bangladesh   

Prospects and Challenges

DOI

https://dx.doi.org/10.59212/9789845064071_7

Year of Publication

2024

Publisher Name 

The University Press Limited (UPL)

Imprint 

The University Press Limited (UPL)

Language

English 

BISAC 1

SOC004007

Edition No. 

01