Critics shudder at the mindless sameness of standards, while supporters dream of a world in which standardized "best practices" open up a world of efficient health care delivery. This title takes up this debate to investigate the real meaning of standardization and how it affects patients, doctors, and the institution of medicine.

AcknowledgmentsIntroduction: The Politics of Standardization1. Standardization in Medicine in the Twentieth Century: The Emergence of the Paper-Based Patient Record2. Standards at Work: A Dynamic Transformation of Medicine3. From Autonomy to Accountability? Clinical Practice Guidelines and Professionalization4. Guidelines, Professionals, and the Production of Objectivity in Insurance Medicine5. Evidence-Based Medicine and Learning to Doctor6. Standardizing Risk: A Case Study of ThalidomideEpilogue: The Quest for QualityNotesBibliographyIndex

"The Gold Standard is an engaging, well thought-out examination of a timely topic-evidence-based medicine. Timmermans and Berg raise taken-for-granted concepts such as power, objectivity, standardization, EBM and discuss them in innovative and complicated interpretations. The arguments presented here provide clarity on animportant subject, highlighting the always interesting impact of unintended consequences."-Alexandra Dundas Todd, Department of Sociology, Suffolk University, and author of Double Vision, An East-West Collaboration for Coping with Cancer "The Gold Standard is an intelligent and well-written analysis of crucial developments in biomedical practice over the past century. Timmermans and Berg provide us with a comprehensive study of the growing movement to standardize biomedicine, calling attention to the risks and benefits for doctors and patients alike. This unique and important book should attract interest among medical sociologists, science studies scholars, bioethicists, health policy analysts, and all those who care about the practice of medicine today."-Steven Epstein, Department of Sociology, University of California, San Diego, and author of Impure Science: AIDS, Activism, and the Politics of Knowledge "This book sets the standard for the study of standardization in medicine. Focusing on evidence based medicine's meteoric rise and influence, Timmermans and Berg go beyond the professional rhetoric to examine its impact on the practice of medicine. Well-written and replete with sociological case studies, this book is must reading for social scientists, physicians and policy-makers."-Peter Conrad, Harry Coplan Professor of Social Sciences, Brandeis University "It is rare to find a book that can serve both as an excellent introduction to its subject for people who have not previously given it much thought or study and also as an advanced reading for people who know the subject area well. Happily, The Gold Standard is such a book."-The Journal of Legal Medicine "This eminently readable book is recommended to healthcare industry personnel and to policy makers who would be interested in a thoughtful study of the political, ethical, and functional aspects of the standardization of clinical behavior."-Quality Management in Health Care "[T]his is a surprising work...its scope places it in the realm of monumental works like Paul Starr's Pulitzer-Prize winning [book]. This book is highly recommended...especially to those grappling with the challenge of creating consistently high-quality health care at a cost our nation can afford."-Inquiry "...a highly readable and comprehensive book... I can recommend this book to everyone who is interested in the subject."-Medicine Health Care and Philosophy: A European Journal (pdf) "This book is helpful to physicians and healthcare executives who need to have a better understanding of the evolution and application of evidence-based medicine."-The Journal of the National Medical Association