Concepts and Perceptions of Health, Illness, and Disease/ Healing System

Concepts and perceptions of health,
illness, and disease/ healing system
Ayaz Latif Laghari

RN, DCHN, BScN ,MSN*
Instructor Nursing
BEACHWOOD INSTInstitute of Nursings
Objectives
At the end of this unit learners will be able to:
1. Describe the concepts of health, illness and disease

2. Discuss perceptions of health and illness in different
societies and cultures
3. Discuss health and disease as a product of social
behavior
4. Differentiate between the different healing systems and
practitioners
5. Describe basic principles of Eastern and Western
medicine
6. Identify issues of integration of traditional healing
practices and modern medicine
Anthropology
• The science of human beings ; the study
of human beings through time and space
and in relation to physical characters,
environmental and social relations, and
culture
Cultural Anthropology
• Anthropology that deals with human
culture especially with respect to social
structure, language, law, politics, religion,
magic, art, and technology
Culture
The characteristic features of everyday
existence (a way of life) shared by people
in a place or time.
Transcultural nursing
• A substantive (individualized) area of study and
practice focused on comparative cultural care
(caring) values, beliefs and practices of
individuals or groups of similar or different
cultures. Transcultural nursing's goal is to
provide culture specific and universal nursing
care practices for the health and well-being of
people or to help them face unfavorable human
conditions, illness or death in culturally
meaningful ways.
• (Leininger 2002)
Society
• a voluntary association of individuals for
common ends ; especially : an organized
group working together or periodically
meeting because of common interests,
beliefs, or profession
Health
• According to WHO health is the state of
complete physical, mental and social well
being and not merely the absence of
disease or infirmity.
Most people define health as the following
Being free from symptoms of disease and
pain as much as possible
Being able to be active and able to do
what they want or must.
Being in good sprits most of the time.
Wellness and wellbeing
Wellness is the state of wellbeing.
Basic concept of wellness is
• self responsibility
• ultimate goal
• Growing process
• Daily decision making in the area of nutrition
• Stress management
• Physical fitness
• Preventive health care
• Emotional heath
Whole being of individual.
Dimensions of wellness
Social Spiritual
Physical Wellness
Intellectual
Emotional
Illness
• Illness is a highly personal state in which
the person feels unhealthy or ill.
• Illness may or may not be related to
disease .
• Example
• Growth in the stomach not feel ill
• A person can feel ill but have no disease
• It is highly subjective only individual
person can say S/he is ill.
Disease
• Disease is a term that can be describe as
an alteration in body functions resulting in
a reduction of capacities or a shortening of
the normal life span.
The Illness-Wellness Continuum
ILLNESS WELLNESS
Poor Neutral Point High quality of
quality Neither ill nor well. life.
of life.
Loss of Health & Wellness Improving Health & wellness

The illness-Wellness Continuum
Many people think in terms of illness, and assume that
the absence of illness indicates wellness.
There are, however, actually many degrees of
wellness, just as there are many degrees of illness.
The Illness/Wellness Continuum illustrates the
relationship of the treatment model to the wellness
model:
 Moving from the center to the left shows a
progressively worsening state of health.
Moving to the right of center indicates increasing levels
of health and wellbeing.
General considerations
• To provide culturally competent nursing services
to clients, nurses need data about the client’s
personal and cultural views regarding health and
illness.
• Specific cultural data can provide scientific

generalizations about health and illness
behavior in different cultures
Example
• In Hispanic family the man is usually the provider and
decision maker. The woman may need to consult her
husband prior to making decisions about her medical
treatment or the treatment of her children
• Grandmother or grandfather is viewed as the leader of the
family and a decisions maker
• The nurse need to identify who has the authority to make

decisions in a client’s family
• The nurse need to include that person in health care

decisions
• When assessing a client the nurse considers the
client’s cultural values, beliefs, and practices
related to health and health care
• To provide meaningful nursing care, nurses

must understand their own cultural values,
beliefs, and behaviors
Different healing system and practitioners
• It is important for the nurse to obtain information
about folk or family healing practices that may have
been used prior to the client’s seeking western
medical treatment.
• Often clients are reluctant to share home remedies

with health care professionals for fear of being
laughed.
• The nurse should remember that treatments once
considered to be folk treatments, including
acupuncture, therapeutic touch, and massage are
now being investigated for their therapeutic effects.
• Food can also be considered part of the remedy
for illness.
• Food classified as “hot" food or food that are hot

in temperature may be used to treat illnesses
that are classified as “cold” illnesses.
• Example
• Corn meal ( a hot food) may be used to treat
arthritis ( a cold illness )
• New drug therapies are usually evaluated
in western countries, where most
pharmaceutical companies are located
References
• Culture. (2002). In Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary.
Retrieved March 19, 2009, from http://www.merriam-
webster.com/dictionary/culture
• Leininger MM, Mcfarland MR. Transcultural nursing:
concepts, theories, research and practice. 3rd ed. New
York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2002.

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Concepts and perceptions of health,

illness, and disease/ healing system

Ayaz Latif Laghari

1. Describe the concepts of health, illness and disease

Loss of Health & Wellness Improving Health & wellness

• Specific cultural data can provide scientific

• The nurse need to identify who has the authority to make

• The nurse need to include that person in health care

• To provide meaningful nursing care, nurses

• Often clients are reluctant to share home remedies

• Food classified as “hot" food or food that are hot

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