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Health and illness
Health is defined by the WHO as a state of complete physical, mental, social and spiritual well-being, not just the absence of disease. It has evolved over time from an individual concern to a global social goal encompassing quality of life. Traditionally viewed as an absence of disease, the concept of health has expanded to include ecological, psychosocial and holistic perspectives influenced by various social, economic and environmental factors. Illness is defined as an abnormal process that changes an individual's level of functioning compared to their previous state of health.
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Health and illness
- 2. Health : healthis an ideal state of physical and mental well being ,something to strive for but never to attain . Good health is a prerequisite of human productive and developmental process.
- 3. Illness :An illness is the response ,the person has to disease . It is an abnormal process in which the persons level of functioning is changed compared with a previous level.
- 4. In 1948the world health organization (WHO)defines health as, “A state of complete physical, mental, social, spiritual wellbeing and not merely absence of disease or infirmity”
- 5. “ Dynamicstate in which the individual adapts to changes in internal and external environments to maintain a state of well being “ (Potter and Perry- 2014)
- 6. “Health asa state of being well and using every power the individual possesses to the fullest extent” (Nightingale ,1960/1969)
- 7. Health isevolved over the centuries as a concept from individual concern to world wide social goal and encompasses the whole quality of life. Changing concept of health till now are, Biomedical concept Ecological concept Psychosocial concept Holistic concept
- 9. Traditionally, healthhas been viewed as an “absence of disease”, and if one was free from disease, then the person was considered healthy. The medical profession viewed the human body as a machine, disease as a consequence of the breakdown of the machine and one of the doctor’s task as repair of the machine.
- 11. Form ecologicalpoint of view; health is viewed as a dynamic equilibrium between human being and environment, and disease a maladjustment of the human organism to environment. According to Dubos “Health implies the relative absence of pain and discomfort and a continuous adaptation and adjustment to the environment to ensure optimal function.” The ecological concept raises two issues, viz. imperfect man and imperfect environment.
- 12. According topsychosocial concept , “health is not only biomedical phenomenon, but is influenced by social, psychological, cultural, economic and political factors of the people concerned.”
- 14. This conceptis the synthesis all the above concepts. It recognizes the strength of social, economic , political and environmental influences on health. It described health as a unified or multidimensional process involving the wellbeing of whole person in context of his environment .
- 15. Persons physical,emotional, intellectual , social, developmental or spiritual functioning is diminished. Illness is highly subjective ; only the individual person can say he or she is ill.
- 16. Primitive peoplethought “forces” or spirits caused disease.
- 17. Disease canbe described as an alternation in body functions resulting in reduction of capacities or a shortening of the normal life span. The causation of the disease called Etiology.
- 18. State ofwellbeing. “Well being is a subjective perception of vitality and feeling well…..can be described objectively, experienced, and measured …..and can be plotted on a continuum” (Hood and Leddy,2003)