Critically evaluate the extent to which the placebo effect is just a nuisance variable to be controlled The placebo effect is a simulated or a useless treatment for a medical or mental condition which deceives the patient into thinking it is curing them. Usually, these patients will find their health and wellbeing will improve over time, whether it actually does or they just perceive it doesn’t matter, this is called the placebo effect. Common examples of placebos are sugar pills, homeopathy and ‘psychic surgery’. While it sounds as if the deception is the cause of the patient’s improved health, it has been shown that placebos can have a positive effect on a patient who knows they are being given a placebo, when compared with a control group who received a placebo but were not informed of the deception (Kaptchuk TJ, Friedlander E, Kelley JM, et al, 2010). The most common procedure for using a placebo is when a patient is given a useless pill and is told that the pill will improve their condition.
What's the Latest Development? Harvard medical researcher Ted Kaptchuk is finding that how placebos are administered plays a very important role in their ability to cause physiological changes in the body. A trained acupuncturist, Kaptchuck has tested the treatment's ability to work as a placebo by offering his patients qualitatively different treatments. In other words, patients who receive more care and "schmaltz" from their medical professional tend to receive the greatest benefit from sham treatments. Kaptchuk wonders to what extend, if at all, Western medicine can take advantage of the placebo effect to improve treatment.
The new science view human beings as living things (organic), holistic (not broken down) interconnected (social, emotional, spiritual, and physical factors), and feminine values of nurturing, compassion and trust ( Egalitarian) are used in treatment (Robinson, 2004). An example is treating an infection using antibiotics along with addressing the emotional and social issues of the individual. To conclude- in history disease prevention was achieved by forcing an individual to change using the power of a priest or a fix person (human body mechanic) eliciting fear of consequences. Whereas in contemporary method the individual makes lifestyle changes
-Health care organization: The health care system affects a person's health depending on the accessibility of health care institutions and the ease with which health-related services and information can be obtained. Example of biological determinant could be seen in a child who inherited an abnormal sickle cell gene from his parents. Example of life style inimical to health include, careless eating habits, smoking and drunkenness, perverse sexual behaviors and care free attitude to vital health issues. Environmental determinant are, physical, social cultural factors, shelter, social amenities, safe and clean environment and clean water supply. Health organizational determinant consist of quality pre-natal care, routine potent immunization, preventive medical care, good referral system and standard diagnostic facilities.
M1 – biomedical and social – medical models of health The biomedical model of health looks at individual physical functioning and describes bad health and illness as the presence of disease and symptoms of illness as a result of physical causes such as injury or infections and doesn’t look at the social and psychological factors. E.g. biomedical models assume that the complexity of individual can be reduced so that by accumulating facts about the parts that make up their body a decision about how to fix that part will result in health Its weakness of this model is that it lies in its failure to fully include psychosocial factors which have proven to be powerful co-factors of disease in modern society. The strength of the biomedical model is its proven success as a roadmap for diagnosis and treatment of a multitude of diseases over the past two centuries The social model of health looks at how society and our environment affect our everyday health and wellbeing, including factor such as social class, occupation, education, income and poverty, poor diet and pollution. E.g.
Nevertheless, the technologies also prolong the dying processes, leading some people to question whether modern medicine is forcing patients to live in unnecessary pain when there is no chance they will be cured. “Passive euthanasia—disconnecting a respirator or removing a feeding tube has become an accepted solution to this dilemma. Active euthanasia perhaps an overdose of pills or a deadly injection of morphine remains controversial “(McDougall,
This will also improve patient outcome drastically. The healthcare is a holistic entity which involves both the treatment of acute consequences of poor health the prevention of poor health from occurring (Martone 1992). The more successful the HCO is in preventing disease, the more successful they will be in improving patient health (Carlyon 1984). This goes a long way to prove that disease prevention fits nicely into the mission statement of the HCO which says that healthcare organizations do their best to promote healthy living. Ethically, it is the duty of the HCO’s under the umbrella of the CDC, to design/develop strategies to prevent diseases.
"I believe that if I feel well I'm healthy." B. "Only severe symptoms of a disease are worth worrying about." C. "When I don't understand my doctor's explanation or instructions, I'll ask questions until I do understand". D. "When facing a stressful medical procedure, I try not to think
For e.g. if an individual has a heart attack then in this situation the need of the individual is to prevent them from getting worse. It helps people become experts in managing their own condition, therefore stops diseases developing. Government health promotion initiatives The Department of Health is a government department responsible for health protection, health improvement and health inequalities issues in England. So, in an action to improve the health of an individual the Dept of Health
Hypnosis is a psychological and physical or mindbody inclusive therapeutic treatment which facilitates relaxation which is integral in helping to prevent illness and change behaviour. Hypnosis has great potential to un block or change negative emotions by working directly with our internal communication system where messages are transmitted cell to cell. PNI studies have shown that neuropeptide receptors are present on both the cell walls of the immune system and brain and that they work together as a single system of defence against illness. Scientists have stated that our thinking has a direct effect on our physical health and that we can to some extent literally think our selves well or unwell. Hypnosis uses the power of suggestion during the trance state induced by the hypnotic induction to make subjects feel positive and healthy