Social Medicine and the Conflict between"Red"and"Expert"
This paper contextualizes the efforts to enhance population health during the Mao Zedong era within the framework of social medicine.Social medicine contends that illness is not solely a biological phenomenon but also a consequence of specific social conditions,with the latter affecting more.Achieving a sustained im-provement in population health necessitates fostering fundamental political changes and consistently addressing the social origins of illness.What sets the Mao Zedong era apart is its practical embodiment of the general tenets of social medicine,coupled with a thoughtful consideration of potential crises and coping strategies.Cases from the Soviet Union and Chile underscore that without resolving the"red"and"expert"conflicts within the social-ist system,the continuity of social medicine becomes precarious.The institutional design exemplified by"bare-foot doctors"stands out as a pragmatic attempt to navigate the"red"and"expert"conflicts through arrange-ments in both formal economic relations and informal social interactions.The apparent stagnation and retreat of social medicine in China post-1980s should not be construed as a failure of prior explorations.Against the back-drop of deepening political system reforms and the dual challenges posed by the political system and the COV-ID-19 pandemic,a resumption of exploration in social medicine becomes imperative.The practices of the Mao Zedong era offer a robust foundation for indigenous experiences in this exploration.
social medicine"red""expert"Mao Zedong erabarefoot doctor
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