Medical Model

Question 1

Name 5 disciplines w interest in health + illness why?

Answer 1

medicine, anthro, history, geography, sociology

Question 2

medical model serves to?

Answer 2

individualize and depoliticize

Question 3

what are 4 assumptions of medical model?

Answer 3

1. mind-body dualism
2. doctrine of specific etiology
3. biological reductionism
4. body as a machine

Question 4

what is theory of measma?

Answer 4

way that ppl got sick. due to smells/noxious air.

Question 5

what what theory of measma replaced by?

Answer 5

germ theory

Question 6

what is mind-body dualism?

Answer 6

medical model assumption 1.

mind separate from body. illness is involuntary + unconscious.

Question 7

implications of mind-body dualism

Answer 7

treat body without engaging mind. no need to talk with patient. doctor doesn’t listen to words of patient, rather focus on objective symptoms.

Question 8

what is doctrine of specific etiology?

Answer 8

for every disease, there is specific cause

- assumption 2 of medical model

Question 9

implications of doctrine of specific etiology

Answer 9

patient reports less important than diagnostic instruments. test is definitive. drug = cure. doctors have authority.

Question 10

what is magic bullet approach?

Answer 10

pharmaceutical can cure illness - implication of doctrine of specific etiology.

Question 11

what is biological reductionsim?

Answer 11

3rd assumption of medical model.

biology > other aspects of body. has affect on all parts.

Question 12

implications of biological reductionism

Answer 12

look to body to diagnose, ignore social context

Question 13

what is body as a machine

Answer 13

4th assumption of medical model

- body mechanically engineered w unique parts that can be fixed when broken

Question 14

implications of body as machine

Answer 14

treat diseased part, forget impact on whole body.
not every individual recovers same. longer recovery = may be blamed for it.
leads to medical specialization = focus on smaller parts + excluding whole

Question 15

critique of medical model

Answer 15

• mckeown thesis
• illich - iatrogenesis
• fail to see disease is socially constructed.
• boundaries for med from socio-political struggle, not science

Question 16

what is epidemiological transition

Answer 16

change in what people die from. shift from transmitted disease to chronic disease

Question 17

mckeown thesis?

Answer 17

belief that medicine is responsible for changes is overstated.

Question 18

evidence for mckeown thesis?

Answer 18

1. vaccine for TB found way after death rate from TB started to decline

Question 19

mckeown thesis - true cause of changes?

Answer 19

1. advance in nutrition: improved farming + increase transportation = more ppl well fed = nutrients help fight illness.
2. advance in hygiene. sanitation, waste disposed properly. clean water.
3. therapeutic intervention: little impact

Question 20

illich critique on medical model?

Answer 20

medicine is a threat to health. mediccal iatrogenesis. = clinical, social, cultural

Question 21

define clinical iatrogenesis

Answer 21

clinical damage that outweighs its potential benefits

ex: thalidomide.

Question 22

define social iatrogenesis

Answer 22

medicine obscures the political conditions that render society unhealthy. nervios vs hunger. medicalization rather than fixing social issue

Question 23

cultural iiatrogenesis

Answer 23

medicine expropriates the power of the individual to heal. body is resilient, but medicine expects solutions immediately, takes away humanity, deny pain/suffering

Question 24

socially constructed disease

Answer 24

define “sick” or “not sick”. emerges out of interactions. societal values seep into what is”healthy” vs not.

Question 25

boundaries of med due to socio-political

Answer 25

social perspective whether it’s important, or right vs wrong. not so much about scientific discovery or scientifically valid.