Health and Globalization

This accessible book examines the multidimensional influence of globalization on human health and disease. The acceleration of globalization since the end of the Cold War has had numerous far-reaching impacts on health-related issues, both social and political, and as this book shows, globalization continues to present both positive and negative implications for the state of human health.

In Health and Globalization, Geoffrey and William Cockerham focus on the relationships between globalization and a variety of health-related topics including the spread of Western medicine, the rise of medical tourism, and adverse effects on the environment. Particular attention is paid to issues of contemporary urgency such as the spread of pandemics and the role of global health governance, as well as reviewing changes in health care delivery systems in the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, China, Russia, and selected developing countries. The book provides a readable account of the many actors involved in global health, analyzing the interactions of national governments, governmental and nongovernmental organizations, and multinational corporations in addressing global health issues.

Health and Globalization will be illuminating reading for students on a wide range of courses including public health, globalization, the sociology of medicine, and development.

Geoffrey B. Cockerham is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Utah University

William C. Cockerham is Distinguished Professor of Sociology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham