The healthcare systems of Western States are characterised by complex
structures and diverse activities. The authors investigate the conflicts
of various professions within the medical market from a historical
perspective, thereby reaching a better understanding of contemporary
questions and problems concerning the field of medical care. The focus
lies on analysing the establishment of non-physician health professions
in their social framework as well as their profession-specific
developments. The contributions outline and explore the conflicts within
one professional group as well as those between different professional
groups. This volume not only examines the history of nursing, but also
the history of other non-physician professions such as midwives,
diabetes advisors and paramedics. The authors are particularly
interested in investigating which player had interpretational
sovereignty on the medical market, the social prestige of different
health professions, and the profession-specific practices.