Collaborative Group:  Medicine/ health care

In what ways are families and the social institution of medicne wedded together?  Can you describe the way families typically perceive medicine and health care providers?  Are they equally received by medical professionals?  Is health care something that depends upon the "good" provider and his (sic) employer?  What is the relationship between medicine and families?  These basic questions are the underlying issues this group addresses.  Some worthwhile links:
 

FamiliesUSA A Voice for Health Care Consumers
National Partnership for Women and Families
Pacific Reproduction Services
Navigating the Health Care System
American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy
Helping the helpers:  State-Supported Services for Family Caregivers Nearly one in four U.S. households was involved in caring for an older family member or  friend in 1997. Without the assistance of these family caregivers, many older  people with disabilities would be forced to enter institutions for their care.
Snapshots of America's Families: Variations in Health Care across States In this paper, we present preliminary findings from the 1997 National Survey of America's Families (NSAF)—the household survey component of ANF—related to insurance coverage, health status, and access to care.
National Codalition on Health Care "The National Coalition on Health Care recently released the findings of three studies it had commissioned dealing with the cost of health care, the number of uninsured, and the quality of health care. Those findings … indicate that the health care crisis, acknowledged by both presidential candidates in 1992 … is not only still with us, but growing worse."
Pfizer -- Health Care in the 21st Century Employed individuals will bear the cost of health care for themselves, their families and those unable to pay for themselves.