The book is an in depth fountain of knowledge for anyone working in the medical sector, for patients themselves and for the people who can help improve the quality of healthcare.... Definitely a must read for anyone interested in the quality of healthcare. Laszlo Igali, Royal College of Pathologists Bulletin Charlotte Williamson is exceptionally well qualified to write ... Read moreabout radical patients' movements. I hope her book will encourage patient groups to gain new confidence and authority, and healthcare policy makers, managers and practitioners to find new ways of working with patients to improve health services. Professor Priscilla Alderson, Institute of Education, University of London Dr Williamson......writes with the assurance and authority of someone with both academic and practical experience, and the book is tightly argued and clearly written. I found it stimulating. Dougal Jeffries in British Journal of General Practice Charlotte Williamson is a radical, highly persuasive champion of patients' interests. Here she describes the rise of the patient movement and with it the emancipation of patients themselves. Scholarly, empathetic and written in plain English, this definitive commentary on patient emancipation is a `must have' for anyone interested in patients and their wellbeing. Sir Donald Irvine, Chairman of Picker Institute Europe and former President of the General Medical Council The author is clearly very well informed and a practiced communicator. The book has a clear theoretical thrust and is well-illustrated from personal and researched experiences of the `patient movement'. Graham Scambler, Professor of Medical Sociology, Director, Centre for Sociological Theory and Research on Health, UCL Medical School Show Less