Health: Concept of Health & Wellness

CONCEPT OF HEALTH & WELLNESS
Health
 Traditionally health has been defined in the term of the Presence or absence of
disease.
 A series of successful and continuous adaptation to a continuously changing
environment.
 The conditions of being sound in body, mind or spirit and especially free from
physical disease or pain (Webster).
 Soundness of body or mind; that condition in which their functions are duly and
efficiently discharge (Oxford English Dictionary).
 "A state of relative equilibrium of body, form and function which result from its
successful dynamic adjustment to forces tending to disturb it. It is not passive interplay
between body substance and forces impinging upon it but an active response of body
forces working towards readjustment." (Perkin)
 According to the Nightingale – "Health is a state of being well and using every
power of the individual processes to the fullest extent.
 According to the WHO "Health is a state of complete physical, mental, and
social well-being and not merely the absence of disease"
 These are four aspects or dimensions emerge - (a) Physical (b) Mental (c)
Social and spiritual.
 Physical well-being means having the physical strength, endurance
and energy to work towards your goals.
 Mental well-being is ability to cope with the world in a way that
brings you satisfaction;
 Social well-being means development of relationships with others
– both with people in your immediate surroundings and with the larger community
through cultural, spiritual and political activities.
 "Health is not a condition, it is an adjustment. It is not a state, but a process. The
process adapts the individual not only to our physical, but also our social, environments".
(President's Commission on health need of U.S.)
 According to the ANA – "health is a dynamic state of being in which the
developmental and behavior potential of an individual is realized to the fullest extent
possible."
 Most individuals define health as the following:
 being free of symptoms of disease and pain as much as possible
 being able to be active and able to do what they want or must do
 being in good spirits most of the time
Concepts of Health
 The new concepts are bound to emerge based on new patterns of thought. The
changing concept of health is mainly of four types:
Biomedical Concept
 Traditionally health has been viewed as "absence of disease" if one person is free
from disease, s/he is considered as healthy. This concept is known as "Biomedical
Concept", it has basis is germ theory of disease.
 The medical profession viewed the human body as a machine, disease because of
the breakdown of the machine and one of the Doctor's tasks as repair of machine. Thus,
health in a narrow view became ultimate goal of medicine.
 The limitation of this concept is that, it has minimized the role of environmental,
social, psychological and cultural determinants of health.
Ecological Concept
 The ecologist put forward another hypothesis, which viewed health as a dynamic
equilibrium between man and his environment, and disease as a maladjustment of the
human organisms to the environment.
 Ecological and cultural adaptations determine not only the occurrence of disease
but also the availability of food and the population explosion.
 History argues that improvement in human adaptation to natural environment can
lead to longer life expectancies and a better quality of life.
 The concept supports the need for clean air, safe water, ozonic layer in the
atmosphere, etc. to protect us from exposure to unhealthy factors.
Psycho social Concept
 Contemporary developments in social sciences revealed that health is not only a
biomedical phenomenon, but also one, which is in the need by social psychological,
cultural, economic and political factors of the people concerned. Health is both a
biological and social phenomenon.
Holistic Concept
 Holism means viewing a person's health as a balance of body, mind, and spirit.
Treating only the body will not necessarily restore optimal health. In addition to physical
needs, nurses must also consider clients' psychological, sociocultural, developmental, and
spiritual needs.
 Holistic model is a synthesis of biomedical & ecological model & psychosocial
concept. It recognizes the strength of social, economic, political and environmental
influence on health.
 It has been defined as unified or multidimensional process involving the well-
being of the whole person in the context of his environment.
 Holistic concept implies that, all sectors of society have an effect on health, in
particular, agriculture, animal husbandry, food, industry, education, housing, public
works, communications and health sectors the emphasis is on promotion and protection
of health.
Wellness
 Wellness is a state of well-being. It is an active process by which an individual
progresses towards maximum potential possible, regardless of current state of health.
 Basic aspects include:
 Self-responsibility
 An ultimate goal
 A dynamic, growing process
 Daily decision-making in areas related to health
 Whole being of the individual
Components of Wellness
1. physical, e.g.:
1. ability to carry out daily tasks
2. achieve fitness
3. maintain nutrition and proper body fat
4. avoid abusing drugs, alcohol, or using tobacco products
5. generally to practice positive life-style habits
2. social, e.g.:
1. ability to interact successfully with people and within the environment of
which each person is a part
2. develop and maintain intimacy with significant others
3. develop respect and tolerance for those with different opinions and beliefs
3. emotional, e.g.:
1. ability to manage stress and express emotions appropriately
2. ability to recognize, accept, and express feelings
3. ability to accept one's limitations
4. intellectual, e.g.:
1. ability to learn and use information effectively for personal, family, and
career development
2. striving for continued growth and learning to deal with new challenges
effectively
5. spiritual, e.g.:
1. belief in some force (nature, science, religion, or a "higher power") that
serves to unite human beings and provide meaning and purpose to life
2. includes a person's morals, values, and ethics
6. occupational
1. ability to achieve a balance between work and leisure time
2. beliefs about education, employment and home influence personal
satisfaction and relationships with others
7. environmental
1. ability to promote health measures that promote the standard of living and
quality of life in the community
1. influences include:
1. food
2. water
3. air
Modal of health care

Health model is a complex concept that is gives the explanations and relationship
between the health and illness or injury. These models can be helpful in assign the need
of health and wellness.
Clinical model (M.B. Belloc & L. Breslo, 1972)
 The clinical model is narrowest interpretation of health. It is a medically oriented
model.
 According to the model –
 Health is seen as freedom from disease
 Illness is seen as the presence of disease
Role performance model (Parsons, 1958)
 Health is defined in term of the individual ability to perform work, which is fulfil
the societal roles.
 Health is seen as the ability to fulfill societal roles
 Illness is seen as the inability to fulfill societal roles
Adaptive model
 This model is biased on the ability to adapt to the environment and interact with
it.
 Health is seen as adaptation
 Illness is seen as a failure of adaptation, or maladaptation
Eudemonistic model
 The Eudemonistic model is the most comprehensive, holistic, view of health.
 Health is actualization or realization of one's potential
 Illness is seen as the failure to actualize or realize one's potential
Agent-Host-Environment Model
 The agent host environment model describes the cause of illness. It is used
primarily in predicting illness rather than promoting wellness
 The model is composed of three dynamic, interactive elements –
 Agent
 Host
 Environment

Health: Concept of Health & Wellness

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Health: Concept of Health & Wellness

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Health: Concept of Health & Wellness

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

What are the different concepts of health discussed in the document?

What are the components of wellness according to the document?

CONCEPT OF HEALTH & WELLNESS

Modal of health care

You might also like