The contributors include prominent specialists in medical, military, and labour history, who provide valuable examinations of such issues as the ideological origins of the welfare state, the experience of the Canadian Army Medical Corps during the First World War, and the development of neuropsychology during the Second World War.

Several essays are particularly relevant to contemporary concerns. A history of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in Canada, extended to include present-day research, reveals underlying flaws in the approach to STDs taken by Canadian governments and the medical establishment. The comparative development of health insurance in Canada and the United States is discussed in another essay. Other authors provide a historical and critical review of a key assumption of Canadian Medicare: that universal first-dollar coverage will enhance equity in the use of health services and in health status.

In addition to David Naylor, who writes the Introduction, the contributors are Robin F. Badgley, Jay Cassel, Terry Copp, Raisa B. Deber, Colin D. Howell, Stephen J. Kunitz, Desmond Morton, Eugene Vayda, Samuel Wolfe, and Judith Young.

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"Most of these essays are good solid narrative contributions to Canadian medical historiography. They tell us about areas of Canadian medicine that hitherto have remained largely unexplored ... They explore 'unused material' and contribute to our understanding of 'what happened.'" Thomas E. Brown, Department of Humanities, Mount Royal College.