How do new medical models affect patients, doctors, and medical decision making? Explaining our understanding of epidemic disease through history, Virtual Epidemics looks at the recent turn toward predictive mapping and surveillance technologies of emerging infectious disease. Achitoff-Gray shows how new internet and other medical models dovetail with Western medical discourse to create a culture of fear of disease held by both doctors and patients. She explores such questions as: How does the predominant emerging diseases alter our understanding of health and bodies? What are the goals and implications of surveillance technologies such as Google and Flu Trends on specific regions and populations? How is the volatile space of virtual disease influencing domestic and global health policy? This timely and comprehensive book will have wide appeal to students and academics interested in medical sociology, science studies and beyond.
