Decline of the hospital: reconstructing institutional dangers

Journal/Book: Sociol Health Ill. 1998; 20: 108 Cowley Rd, Oxford OX4 1JF, Oxon, England. Blackwell Publ Ltd. 445-457.

Abstract: The number of hospital beds in Britain rose to a peak about 35 years ago but has since rapidly declined. This dramatic change was preceded by a number of independent technical critiques of two core assumptions of hospital care, that the hospital was a place of safety, and bed rest was in itself therapeutic. The result was the end of the old hospital and a search for an alternative that stressed restricted bed usage and more ambulatory services. These changes may themselves be manifestations of an even more fundamental realignment in the relationship between health and illness.

Note: Article Armstrong D, Umds, Dept Gen Practice, 5 Lambeth Walk, London SE11 6SP, ENGLAND

Keyword(s): bed rest; danger; hospital; safety

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