S1: Public Health and Biopsychosocial models Flashcards
what is the biopsychosocial model of medicine
- biological, social and psychological factors all contribute to the causes and treatments of a patients disease
- biological factors (eg the disease itself and the medical diagnosis), psychological (eg adjusting to life with new diagnosis) and social (eg accessibility and how others percieve them)
- all factors feed into patients health
- a way of looking at patient more holistically
first conceptualised by george engel in 1977
contrast the biopsychosocial model and the biomedical model
Biomedical model focuses on treatment and elimination of symptoms, while bio-psychosocial model focuses on individual’s perception of their symptoms and how they and their families respond to symptoms they are experiencing
why is the biopsychosocial model important in modern healthcare
- gives patient more control as the psychological and social factors are more in their control than the biological ones are
- allows patient, family and physicians to understand what factors are feeding into their health
- better management of disease
- important for patients to understand a range of treatments for their long-term health conditions
examples of biological and social and psychological factors
biological
- physical health
- disability
- genetics
psychological
- mental health
- self esteem
social
- accessibility
- family situation
- peers
- job/study status
why do people in different cultural settings experience health and illness differently
- stigma
- language barriers, affecting communication and understanding
- involvement of family members
- women and privacy
- different understandings of symptoms and health conditions
- different values around age or gender
- different dietary/bodily practices or preferences
- religious or cultural beliefs, such as no medical intervention or no blood transfusion
- sterotyping by healthcare professionals
- lack of culturally sensitive care
what is culturally appropriate healthcare and some examples
Culturally appropriate care is sensitive to people’s cultural identity or heritage. It means being alert and responsive to beliefs or conventions that might be determined by cultural heritage
- linguistic or cultural supports (eg translator or chaperone)
- enabling appropriate food and drink or dietary practices (eg around fasting or halal/kosher)
- enabling wishes for important life events that have cultural significance (eg birth of a child or end of life care)
- enabling request for procedure (eg circumcision)
- accepting refusal of a procedure/treatment (eg blood transfusion)
why is culturally appropriate healthcare important
- improves patient outcomes and increases patient safety
- improved patient experiences and quality of life
- reduces disparities in health care outcomes
- protects people from discrimination (concious or unconcious)
- improves doctor-patient relationship and ongoing healthcare interactions
define public health and describe it’s features
the health of the population as a whole, dealing with disease prevention, prolonging life and promoting health
public health values include…
- health as a right
- health equity
- empowerment
- inclusiveness
working with governments to bring about change and develop policies, identify and solve community health problems, vaccination programmes etc
what is the difference between equality and equity
- Equality means each individual or group of people is given the same resources or opportunities
- Equity recognizes that each person has different circumstances and allocates the exact resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome
identify the three domains of public health
health protection
- control of infectious diseases
- managing health emergency responses
- managing environmental health hazards
- vaccination programmes
healthcare services delivery
- ensuring that the quality of healthcare delivery is consistently good
- evidence-informed healthcare
- addressing issues of effectiveness, efficiency and equity
health improvement/promotion
- improving the social determinants of health
- reducing inequalities
- addressing housing, employment and social relationships
- monitoring of risk factors
- improving education
give examples of areas of focus for public health improvement
- tackling vaccine hesitancy
- stopping smoking + vaping
- illicit drug use
- obesity
- healthier diets
- pollution
define evidence-based healthcare
refers to the application of the best available research to clinical care, which requires the integration of evidence with clinical expertise and patient values
follows 4 steps…
- formulate clear clinical questions from a patient’s problem
- search the literature for relevant clinical articles
- evaluate (critically appraise) the evidence for its validity and usefulness
- implement useful findings in clinical practice
define health inequality
avoidable and unfair differences in health status between groups of people or communities
- socially constructed
- not due to differences in genetics or physiology
health inequalities can therefore involve differences in..
- health status (eg life expectancy)
- access to care, for example availability of certain services
- quality and experience of care (eg levels of patient satisfaction)
- behavioural risks to health (eg smoking rates)
- wider determinants of health (eg quality of housing)
what is the inverse care law
the availability of good medical care tends to vary inversely with the need for it in the population served
ie those who need the most medical care are the least likely to recieve it
