Sanitary democracy: advancements and resistance in the participation process of patients/users of the French healthcare system

Abstract

The discussion about advancements in healthcare
involves the question of patient/user participation
in decisions about their treatment, rights and
influence on public health policies. This article
thus outlines a brief history about the participation
of patients/users of the French health system
and to point out the main achievements and
difficulties today. Three main sources were used:
official archives, documents produced by patient
associations, and journal articles. In France,
patient participation is part of a complex scenario
that can be seen in the term “Sanitary Democracy”,
which brought together health and politics, so that
the structured power relations between patients
and health professionals could be questioned and a
debate between science and democracy could take
place. The AIDS epidemic in the 1980s, followed
by various health scandals, led to a break with the
traditional model of structuring relationships in
the health field, leading to change in the patient’s
status, role and identity through the strengthening
of the associative movement.