ABSTRACT
Changes in the landscape of health care over the past 20 years have been of great significance for research in the field of illness perceptions. The importance of psychological factors in the management of chronic illnesses has received increasing attention in the health field. There has been a greater emphasis on prevention of disease in healthy populations and on understanding and improving rates of adherence to treatment programmes in those with chronic conditions. Advances in the field of-genetics are offering patients and their health care providers greater options in the areas of screening and prevention. These changes have increasingly challenged the established view of the patient as a passive and obliging participant in the health care process. Patients now have higher expectations of health care providers to be informed about diagnosis and treatments as well as having their views taken into account in medical interactions.
