ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to study the pattern of medical pluralism of Chinese people in Britain and their methods of securing social inclusion in the health care system. We are also interested in the factors, especially those related to pragmatism, globalism and culturalism, that affect their decisions when choosing their methods for promoting health and seeking social inclusion. The chapter is based on a literature review and the findings of two studies concerning Chinese elderly people in Glasgow and Chinese women in Sheffield. Both studies were part of a larger research project funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation from 1997 to 1999. The chapter discusses the concepts of medical pluralism in terms of the various types of social relationships involved in health services. It also focuses on Chinese people's strategies of pursuing social inclusion in the health care system. The chapter looks at the cultural, global and pragmatic factors of these strategies.
