The Evolution of British General Practice, 1850-1948

The general practitioner has long been the mainstay of the British medical system. Ann Digby deserves our thanks for rescuing the general practitioner's history from oblivion * JAMA, Vol.284, No.2 (2000) *
offers some interesting insights into the additional challenges that women physicians had to overcome * JAMA, Vol.284, No.2 (2000) *
a work refreshingly national in scope * JAMA, Vol.284, No.2 (2000) *
it contains voluminous new material ... A particularly good chapter on women doctors suggests their more extensive and earlier presence in general practice ... than is often assumed ... Anne Digby has produced a monumental work, simultaneously provocative and an essential new reference point. The book represents a considerable achievement, which will be widely used and should trigger further investigation. * Steven Cherry, Twentieth Century British History, 11:4, 2000 *
It is ... more than up to standard, combining innovative approaches with comprehensive coverage ... one can be impressed by the breadth and thoroughness of Annd Digby's scholarship * Steven Cherry, Twentieth Century British History, 11:4, 2000 *
Enthusiasts have long awaited this final part of the Oxford triology charting the evolution of present-day primary care. They will not be disappointed, for this volume fully equals its companions, and is also as diverse in its form and structure. * Jim Ford, British Jnl of Gen Practice, Feb. 2000. *
carefully chosen anecdote brings the work to life. * Jim Ford, British Jnl of Gen Practice, Feb. 2000. *
an excellent chronology of the continuous growth in generalist medical practice before the NHS. * Jim Ford, British Jnl of Gen Practice, Feb. 2000. *
A major and extremely welcome contribution to our understanding of the details of medical life over nearly 250 years. This is a most lucid and valuable account of general practice that will serve as a benchmark for many years to come. * A Gelling, Bulletin of Historical Medicine. *
The book manages to reveal the great diversity of general practice, and it's underlying economic imperatives. This sense of the range of activity - whether single-handede or group, in the 1850s or the 1940s, run by men or wome, located in affluent country areas or in hardpressed colliery districts - is arguably the most striking aspect of the book, and in this respect it is difficult to see how itcould be improved upon. * John Welshman, Lancaster University. *
One of the book's many strengths is its sensitivity to local and regional variation in practice type.Impressive archival research is supplemented by innovative use of a database comprised of obituraries from the British Medical Journal ... with considerable care and accuracy. * John Welshman, Lancaster University. *
exeptional use of provincial sources ... the result is a work refreshingly national in scope. * L.Margaret Barnett, PhD, Jnl of the American Medical Association, July 2000. *
the book offers some interesting insights into the additional challenges that women physicians had to overcome. * L.Margaret Barnett, PhD, Jnl of the American Medical Association, July 2000. *
most innovative and interesting ... are thos that describe the day-to-day events in an ordinary physicians life. * L.Margaret Barnett, PhD, Jnl of the American Medical Association, July 2000. *
Ann Digby deserves our thanks for rescuing the general practitioners history from oblivion. * L.Margaret Barnett, PhD, Jnl of the American Medical Association, July 2000. *
extraordinarily thorough survey ... Digby has interesting, sometimes fascinating information about a very timely subject. * F Van Hartesveldt, CHOICE, February 2000 *
...this book is a work of scholarship with copious references and footnotes, while at the same time bringing alive the experience of previous generations of GPs. * Anne Dibgy, Health Service Journal *
This authoritative and comprehensive history of British general practice in the century leading up to the introduction of the National Health Service in 1984... a scholarly account brought to life by the personalised references so that this becomes a most readable and entertaining book... a fascinating an most readable book for anyone interested in the unfolding story of British general practice. * A.G. Donald, IHNJ *