This is the first wide-ranging, multi-authored handbook in the field of philosophy of medicine, covering the underlying conceptual issues of many important social, political and ethical issues in health care. It introduces and develops over 70 topics, concepts, and issues in the field. It is written by distinguished specialists from multiple disciplines, including philosophy, health sciences, nursing, sociology, political theory, and medicine. Many difficult social and ethical issues in health care are based on conceptual problems, most prominently on the definitions of health and disease, or on epistemological issues regarding causality or diagnosis. Philosophy is the discipline that deals with such conceptual, metaphysical, epistemological, methodological, and axiological matters. This handbook covers all the central concepts in medicine, such as ageing, death, disease, mental disorder, and well-being. It is an invaluable source for laypeople, academics with an interest in medicine, and health care specialists who want be informed and up to date with the relevant discussions. The text also advances these debates and will set the agenda for years to come.

Thomas Schramme is Professor in the Department of Philosophy of University of Hamburg, Germany. Dr. Schramme has nearly 2 decades of teaching and research experience in the field of philosophy of medicine. He has held several fellowships and holds Editorial Board memberships in a number of prestigious journals. Dr. Schramme has to his credit a large number of publications on philosophy of medicine and bioethics.

Steven Edwards is Professor in the Department of Philosophy, History & Law in Swansea University, UK. Over the past 20 years, Dr. Edwards has focused mainly on ethical and philosophical issues in healthcare, specifically the philosophy and ethics of nursing and the philosophy of disability. He is a member of important ethics committees in related fields. Dr. Edwards has to his credit a good number of publications on philosophy of medicine and bioethics.