About the BSA Medical Sociology Group
The BSA Medical Sociology Group exists to promote scholarship and communication in the field of the sociology of health and illness in the United Kingdom. The group is one of the largest and most active study groups of the British Sociological Association. Membership of the BSA brings benefits in terms of reduced conference fees and journal subscriptions, but most group activities are open to non-members.
The major activity of the group is the BSA Medical Sociology Group Annual Conference held in the United Kingdom each September. The 40th Annual Conference of the Medical Sociology Group in 2008 will be held on Thursday 4th – Saturday 6th September at the University of Sussex, Brighton. As usual, it will consist of a plenary address and a programme of concurrent sessions on a wide range of topics in the sociology of health and illness.
Paper slots are 30 minutes in duration (including discussion time), and there are also poster presentations. Please click here for further details. Conference costs are kept as low as possible and some subsidised places and help with travel costs may be available for students or unwaged people (details on booking form).
Additional information is available from the BSA office. Please contact:
Liz Jackson
Bailey Suite
Palatine House
Belmont Business Park
Belmont
Durham
DH1 1TW
Telephone: +44 (0)191 383 0839
Fax: +44 (0)191 383 0782
E-mail Liz Jackson.
The convenors of the Medical Sociology Group are Gillian Bendelow and Kim Clarke. Email the convenors.
Other group activities are organised under the auspices of the regional group, which organise meetings in different areas of the UK. The MedSoc Committee is keen to support the establishment of new regional groups in under-served areas and any interested parties should contact the convenors.
The group has also supported the regular publication of Medical Sociology in Britain: a Register of Research and Training. The register is now on its eighth edition, compiled by Rose Barbour and Edwin van Teiglingen in 1998.
Medical Sociology Online, formerly Medical Sociology News, publishes high quality articles in the broad area of Medical Sociology. It contains a programme of events for regional and interest groups and advance notices of conferences. Click here for further information about Medical Sociology Online.
Although no formal relationship exists, the group has a close association with the journal Sociology of Health and Illness, published by Blackwell. Five issues plus a monograph are published each year. SHI has a traditional leaning towards qualitative work and now attracts an increasing number of international submissions. Since its appearance in 1979, SHI has emerged as the leading British publication in its field and the Social Science Citation Index consistently ranks it in the top 10 public health journals and top 20 sociology journals in the world. The editors are Clive Seale, Jonathan Gabe, Steven Wainwright and Clare Williams. There is a reduced subscription rate for BSA members.
The British Sociological Association is the umbrella organisation for a range of study groups. The BSA Annual Conference takes place in March/April, as well as a range of other events; and produces its own newsletter, Network. Membership application details are available on our Joining the Association webpage or from the BSA Office, Bailey Suite, Palatine House, Belmont Business Park, Belmont, Durham DH1 1TW. Send an email.
We recommend that people wishing to initiate online discussions use the BSA’s forum.
The American Sociological Association also have an active Medical Sociology section. They currently have a listserv group which you may subscribe to - please visit the ASA’s Online Discussion Group for further details.
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