Sociology - Essay ExampleOn the other hand, there is the individual autonomy. The individual professional autonomy of the physician is not only limited to his/her ability in making clinical decisions and in securing the necessary medical services for patients but it also encompasses the autonomy in pertinent to control over one’s own work, which may include the structure and schedule of the work (Stoddard et al, 2001). In line with this, allied health professions have challenged medicine’s professional autonomy. Currently, physicians’ economic stature is challenged from two sides. One is the increasing income gap between the specialists and the general practitioners and the other is coming from the National Health Services, which now requires doctors to produce job plans for the working week, the presence of preauthorization requirements, reducing their freedom to refer and their employment contract being held by Health Authorities (Harrison & Ahmad, 2000).
