Sociological perspective for health and social care. Concepts of Health and Ill health.

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Kinvuidi Adelina Daniel                                                                       24/09/2009

Unit 7: sociological perspectives for health and social care

P1)  Use sociological terminology to describe the principal sociological perspectives.

The principal of sociological perspective are:

 

Functionalism- an important part of some accounts of functionalism is the idea of . Since, according to standard functionalist theories, mental states are the corresponding functional role, mental states can be sufficiently explained without taking into account the underlying physical medium (e.g. the brain, neurons, etc.) that realizes such states; one need only take into account the higher-level functions in the cognitive system.

Marxism- is an economic political theory by which law is considered an instrument of oppression and control, and which the ruling class uses against the working class. Marxism holds at its core a  of  and a theory of . The powerful and innovative analytical methods Marx introduced have influenced a broad range of disciplines.

Feminism- has altered predominant perspectives in a wide range of areas within Western society, ranging from culture to law. Feminist activists have campaigned for women's legal rights (rights of contract, property rights, voting rights); for women's right to bodily integrity and autonomy, for  rights, and for reproductive rights (including access to  and quality prenatal care); for protection of women and girls from , sexual harassment and rape for workplace rights, including  and equal pay; and against other forms of discrimination.        

Collectivism- is a term used to describe any moral, political, or social outlook, that stresses human  and the importance of a , rather than the importance of separate . Collectivists focus on  and , and seek to give priority to group goals over individual goals.

Interactionism- has become one of the dominant sociological perspectives in the world today. It is a theory based on social interaction, and it was first linked to the work of the German theorist . It promotes the idea that nothing in society is determined, and that people can break free of a label as individuals. This is sociology on the .

P2) describe different concepts of health.

There are five concept of health:

Negative health – means thinking negative about health for the reason some people when they are sick, think that they are never going to get better. They stay at home if they catch a minor head-ache they start believing that they want get better. for example a person who as being  sick for a long time in hospital , for the reason that being sick they will start developing negative thinking and than will affect their health.    

Positive health- people who think positively about health, they always feel better when they are sick, because mentally they stronger and can light the disease.  

Lay concepts of health- according to different culture and tradition, many people have their own concept about health. This is mostly related to how old people think about health. For example in the Western world, a symptom such as chest pain has a particular cultural meaning and tends to be regarded with fear. In Ayurvedic medicine, chest pain is also regarded with concern but as a symptom of emotional upset and not as the organic breakdown of bodily function.

Holistic health- health has got many components these health components are sub divided into physical, social, emotional and spiritual health. For example holistic health is not itself a method of treatment, but is an approach to how treatment should be applied. Holistic concepts of health and fitness view achieving and maintaining good health as requiring more than just taking care of the various singular components that make up the physical body, additionally incorporating aspects such as emotional and spiritual well-being.  

World health organisation- health is a state of complete physical, social, mental well-being and mot merely the absence of diseases, illness or infirmly. The WHO's constitution states that its objective is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Its major task is to combat disease, especially key infectious diseases, and to promote the general health of the people of the world.

P3) describe the biomedical and socio medical models of health.

Biomedical model of health: The biomedical model of health has been around since the mid-nineteenth century as the predominant model used by physicians in the diagnosis of disease. This view underpins the policies and practice of the national health service. The biomedical model of health states that the individual is not responsible for their illness and that the mind and body work independently from each other. The biomedical model also suggests that treatment is to change the physical state of the body and that only the medical profession can treat the sufferer but in this case; this would be very problematic due to the mind causing the physical illness and the sufferer only being treated for the physical symptoms which would therefore result in a reoccurrence of the illness. For examplem the use of medical resources to treat symptoms of ill health. This model is based on functions, structure and medical investigations of diseases and illness such as:  

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  • Symptoms
  • Allergies
  • Family
  • Blood/ pressure
  • Asthima- breathing rate and pulse    


Socio-medical: looking at life style to analyses what could be causing symptoms. E.g. poor housing and poverty are causes to respiratory problems, and in response to these causes and origins of ill health, the socio-medical model aimed to encourage society to include better housing and introduce programmes to tackle poverty as a solution. Looking at life’s style to analyses what could be causing symptoms. E.g. looking at a persons housing to see’ if their poor housing conditions are causing health problems.

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