There are numbers of ways of how
health can be defined. One of most known definitions is by World
Health Organization that states ‘health is a state of
complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the
absence of diseases’. However, there are three main
models of health and each of them has its own definition. This
essay will compare and contrast two models of health –
bio-medical model and social model.
Biomedical
model
- Over the last century the most
influencing and dominant model in health in Western countries has
been biomedical model.
- It began in nineteenth and early
twentieth centuries, when there were great advances of medical
science.
- Biomedical model is a conceptual
model of illness that only includes biological factors, excluding
possible psychological and social factors in attempt to understand
person’s medical illness or disorder.
- In other words, biomedical model
sees human body as a machine that if it is not working then it
needs to be fixed.
- Furthermore, it only embraces one
cause of illness, dismissing other possible factors that may have
lead to it.
- Prevention of disease is not the
priority of this health model; it focuses on finding a cure.
- The aim of biomedical model is to
“reduce morbidity and premature mortality".
Social model of
health
- The social model of health is not
as popular as biomedical model, because its cure of illness or
disease is not so straightforward.
- It focuses on the lifestyles and
behaviour of individuals as well as it stresses and encourages
personal responsibility.
- According to Taylor and Field
(2007) ‘significant improvement in health is more likely to come
from changes in people’s behaviour and in the condition under their
live’.
- Following this further, social
model of health acknowledges influences on health of political,
economic, social and environmental factors with the aim of changes
in them, which will help to promote help.
- On the contrary to biomedical
model, the social model of health sees body as a whole rather than
separate bodily part.
The biomedical and social
models of health are different in most of the
aspects
- Though their both promote health,
their propagation towards it and understanding in health is
different.
- While bio – medical model of health
states that “the individual is not responsible for their illness
and that mind and body work independently from each other, the
social model’s affirmation is different.
- It believes in overall state of
health that addresses to physical, social and economic
environment.
- For example, biomedical model of
health would claim that lung cancer is caused by smoking, while
social model of heath may suggest that passive smoking or
hereditary disposition to the disease can be causes to it.
- Pursuing this further, Blaxter yet
suggest that bio – medical model of heath does not promote a
healthy lifestyle, as it could be thought if you are smoking,
excessively drinking and eating unhealthily but not feeling ill,
then it is acceptable to carry on with that.
- Controversially, social model of
health is looking at it differently, by encouraging people to lead
a healthy lifestyle and prevent illnesses and diseases.
- The differences between the
bio-medical and social models of health intensifies even more when
in eighteenth and nineteenth centuries mortality and morbidity
rates decreased.
- The reasons of these magnificent
changes were ‘reduction in mortality from infectious diseases such
as tuberculosis, cholera, diphtheria and dysentery’.
- The serious debate begun between
Griffiths and McKeown, after Griffiths claimed, the ‘growth of the
hospital, dispensary and midwifery services, additions of knowledge
of physiology and anatomy, and introduction of smallpox
inoculation’ (ibid) were the great causes of declining in mortality
rates.
- Despite the strong evidences, Tom
McKeown proved that T. Griffith’s analysis were wrong and gave
distinctive examination.
- It was concluded that particularly
improved living conditions, sanitation and nutrition as well as
limitation in family size were the major factors of reduction in
mortality rates.
- By this, McKeown demonstrated that
social and environmental conditions have a big impact on people’s
lives.
- However, bio – medical model of
health does not agree with social model by raising awareness in
inequalities in health between social classes, stating, that the ‘
diseases of affluence’ , such as coronary heart diseases and cancer
are the major killers in contemporary Britain’.
- Bio – medical model agrees with
social model of health about sex differences in morbidity and
mortality.
- Naidoo and Willis report ‘that
women are more resistant to infection and benefit from a protective
effect from oestrogen accounting for their lower mortality
rates’.
- Even so, the bio medical model can
not explain the difference of women’s mortality rate between social
classes yet again.
In conclusion, it is observable that
both bio – medical model and social model of health has a great
arguments in their believes and promotions. However, it is clear
that social model of health is offering more holistic approach to
health by looking at lifestyle and environment with the aim to
prevent illnesses before it appeared. Saying that, without a bio –
medical model of health, medicine would not be as much advanced as
it is now. Ideally, both models of health should be working along
side to provide with the best care in health and so much needed
qualities in health.