Book excerpt: This book presents an international snapshot of communication inhealthcare settings and examines how policies, procedures andtechnological developments influence day to day practice. Brings together a series of papers describing features ofhealthcare interaction in settings in Australasia, the U.S.A,continental Europe and the UK Contains original research data from previously under-studiedsettings including professions allied to medicine,telephone-mediated interactions and secondary care Contributors draw on the established conversation analyticliterature on healthcare interaction and broaden its scope byapplying it to professionals other than doctors in primarycare Examines how issues relating to policy, procedure or technologyare negotiated and managed throughout daily healthcarepractice