Doctors and the State

Published in 1999, the main aim of this text is to examine the nature of professional control, medical practice and the state of health services in a post-colonial state and the medical profession in Zimbabwe since 1980. The text reviews the theories of professions and professional control and medical practice, it concludes by examining the nature of the Zimbabwean state. The chapter on methodology highlights some of the ethical dilemmas of carrying out research in developing countries. The book then goes on to review health services and policies of both the colonial and post-colonial governments in Zimbabwe. Three chapters discuss the nature of medical practice and the constraints encountered by doctors in their work, the terms and conditions of service under which doctors work, and the nature of medical regulation of education, licensing and discipline including issues such as malpractice and litigation. Throughout the book, comparisons are made with situations in other countries, both developed and developing, and the main conclusions of the book are that medical doctors in Zimbabwe have minimal administrative restrictions on the type of treatment which they can carry out but the unavailability and breakdown of essential equipment, shortages of essential drugs and staff limit the doctors' autonomy to carry out the treatment that they consider necessary.