1.2.2 Boundaries of difference One of the things that language does is define and give a name to differences between people – to delineate the boundaries that separate them. In the mental health field, the ‘mad’ are at one end of the social divide that separates the ‘normal’ from the ‘abnormal’. They are ‘the other’, a point made in the article by Perkins (above): ‘To be mad is to be defined as “other”’. This is a recurring theme in the mental health field. In the following passage Abina Par
Introduction This unit takes you on a journey of discovery where you are invited to challenge ideas, both new and old, in relation to mental health. It is made up of a series of three extracts. The first extract, ‘Boundaries of explanation’, sets out the theme of boundaries: boundaries within and between groups; within and between explanatory frameworks; and within and between experiences of mental health and distress. The second extract, ‘Whose risk is it anyway?’, considers a critical account of
3.6 Ethical practice and accountability: the role and function of professional bodies The UK's medical profession is regulated by the General Medical Council (GMC). One of the main ways in which the GMC, and other regulatory bodies, influences its members is through its code of ethics. This sets out broad principles, rather than detailed guidance, for how practitioners should behave in specific circumstances. This is necessary because a practitioner retains individual accountability and ultimate responsibility for decisions taken during professional practice. Not all br
3.5 The principles underlying ethical practice
Box 3 describes four principles that are central to an understanding of acting ethically. 3.4.3 Respecting autonomy is the foremost ethical principle in health care Some commentators believe the pendulum has swung so far in favour of respecting autonomy that it leaves little scope for users to be passive recipients of healing. The desire to make each user an active participant in their own healing process can make it hard, or even impossible, for a user to refuse to engage in active decision making, and leave the decision to the benevolent practitioner. In this case, the user may waive his or her rights, by choosing not to be kept informed about changes 2.12.1 Integration One factor which is already influencing the nature of the therapeutic relationship is the move towards greater integration with orthodox medicine. Whether or not CAM practitioners welcome this development, it is inevitable. The impetus for this is partly about providing health care that gives patient satisfaction, and also stemming the tide of the spiralling costs of hi-tech, orthodox medicine and medical litigation. Stacey (1988) points out that, when the state funds parts of the nati 2.12 The future of the therapeutic relationship As discussed earlier in this extract, therapeutic relationships are subject to constant review and reinterpretation. As the culture changed, the predominant shift in health care was away from paternalistic forms of relationships based on professional expertise towards partnership models in which the patient has more rights but also more responsibilities. This final section looks to the future and considers some of the factors that can impact on therapeutic relationships in CAM. 2.5 The therapeutic relationship as a placebo Mitchell and Cormack propose that the relationship aspect of a therapeutic encounter can be as important as the technical dimensions of healing (Mitchell and Cormack, 1998). CAM practitioners argue that the therapeutic relationship itself may be an important tool in healing. Critics of CAM turn this argument on its head, suggesting that CAM is, in fact, no more than a powerful form of placebo. What they generally mean is that it is not the specific treatments used that evoke a healing respons 2.3.3 CAM and the ‘tyranny of health’ Some commentators criticise the very idea of the ‘therapy culture’. The issue for them is not how to get people more involved with their health and the therapeutic relationship, but the unhealthy attitude many people have towards seeking perfect health in the first place. How healthy is it for people to constantly turn to professionals or therapists for advice on health care and lifestyle? Should people believe that being in the best of health is the main concern in their lives? The cultu 2.3.2 Responsibility for the causes of ill health Doyal and Pennell (1979) write from the perspective of political economy and argue that there is a continual state of conflict hidden within health experiences and health care relationships. Society produces ill health through an unrelenting drive towards profit and a failure to put the health and wellbeing of individuals first. Work and everyday social life are bound up with taking risks. Many workers experience stress and some occupations involve the risk of physical injury. Social class gr 1.12 Conclusion to Extract 1 The biomedical model that dominated health professional–user interactions for the past 100 years or so marginalised and appeared to devalue certain aspects of the individual and personal experience of illness. However, health care provision is now more user-centred in the prevailing biopsychosocial model. Despite the diversity of health beliefs, the edifice of modern medicine is built on a dominant scientific perspective, which promotes a certain world view at the expense of other cosmologi 1.10 Concepts of healing: philosophies underpinning CAM practice Read the following accounts by individual CAM practitioners of four different modalities. These are personal perspectives, which may vary 1.3 Components and origins of health beliefs Health beliefs, like other personal beliefs, are learned. Knowledge about health and illness is built up from childhood onwards, from diverse sources including family, social networks, community and religion, and through ‘official’ government health messages. Individual health beliefs, while rarely ‘scientific’ in themselves, none the less are grounded in experience, modified over time in the light of that experience, and rational in the light of people's wider belief systems and worl 1.2 What is health? What do the words ‘health’ and ‘healthy’ mean or imply? Superficially this seems a fairly straightforward question: for example, you may recognise that a house plant does not look too healthy. Does this mean it is diseased or is going to die, or that it requires some attention? When applied to humans the term ‘healthy’ is often associated with a variety of other, more elaborate concepts. For example, it may mean that a person looks ‘well’, as a result of being fit (doing Introduction The stresses of modern living take their toll in terms of our health. This unit is formed from three extracts. The first extract is called ‘Understanding why people use complementary and alternative medicine'. This part discusses: the meaning of health, its origins in terms of components and beliefs. Also models of health care delivery are discussed together with concepts and beliefs about complementary and alternative medicine. Extract two 'Critical issues in the therapeutic relationship' Acknowledgements The content acknowledged below is Proprietary (see terms and conditions). This content is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Licence Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following sources for permission to reproduce material in this unit: 1.6.6 Professional bodies and societies Consider joining a learned society or professional organisation. They can be very useful for conference bulletins as well as in-house publications, often included in the subscription. Don't forget to ask about student rates. Try looking for the websites of learned societies associated with your subject area (e.g. The Royal Society , the Institute of Electrica 1.6.4 Blogs The founder ofTechnorati claims that the number of ‘blogs’doubles every five months and that the creation rate is approaching two per second. One estimate I read in July 2010 put the number at 400 million ‘blogs’. Because these online diaries offer instant publishing opportunities, you potentially have access to a wealth of knowledge from commentators and experts (if they blog) in a wi 1.5.6 Copyright – what you need to know An original piece of work, whether it is text, music, pictures, sound recordings, web pages, etc., is protected by copyright law and may often have an accompanying symbol (©) and/or legal statement. In the UK it is the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 which regulates this. In most circumstances, works protected by copyright can be used in whole or in part only with the permission of the owner. In some cases this permission results in a fee. However, the UK legislation incl 1.5.2 Ways of organising yourself How do you organise yourself? Make a note of how you organise your: emails internet bookmarks or favorites computer files your h
Box 3 The principles of acting ethically
Activity 5: Health beliefs in CAM
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