This paper is based on a comparative study examining how Chinese and white families manage the care of a chronically ill child. The circumstances of their lives that shape their experience of illness are explored. It is argued that the ideologies which underpin Western health care practices, in this case, the 'ideology of normalisation', often differ from the perspectives held by non-Western immigrants, and others who do not have access to the ideology. The discrepancies in viewpoints between patients and practitioners can lead to a different set of goals in the treatment encounter, with the possibility of misunderstandings in the clinical context. The 'ideology of normalisation' is used to show how professional ideologies serve as a means of separating out families into those who comply and those who do not. In other words, the ideology, and the moral discourse on normalisation, permit professionals to evaluate families and to categorise them. This categorisation has consequences for patient care, they might be refused treatment. Yet, this ideology is not based merely on 'value-free professional theories', but is located within the moral order. The socio-political, economic and historical factors that underpin the ideology are discussed.
This paper is based on an ethnographic study examining how families caring for a chronically ill child in the home construct their experiences of illness. The role of women caretakers is examined, and it is argued that the term family glosses over the work that women do in caretaking. The 'ideology of competence' which determines women's subjective experiences is discussed, and the notion is forwarded that health professionals rely upon this ideology to get the job of caretaking done in the home. Some implications of this discussion for health care delivery are presented.
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