Health is the state of being free of signs or symptoms of disease. Illness is the presence of signs or symptoms of disease.
Role-Performance Model
Health is the ability to perform all those roles from which one has been socialized.
Health-Illness Continuum
Health is a constantly changing state, with high level wellness and death being on opposite ends of a graduated scale, or continuum.
High-Level Wellness
High-level wellness refers to functioning to one's maximum potential while maintaining balance and purposeful direction in the environment.
Needs-Fulfillment Model
Health is state in which needs are being sufficiently met to allow an individual to function successfully in life with the ability to achieve the highest possible potential.
World Health Organization (WHO) definition of health
Health is the state of complete physical, mental, social well-being and not merely the absence of disease.
Factors affecting health and illness
Physical Dimension
Emotional Dimension
Intellectual Dimension
Environmental Dimension
Sociocultural Dimension
Spiritual Dimension
Physical Dimension
Genetic make-up, age, developmental level, and sex are all part of an individual's physical dimension and strongly influence health status and health practices.
Emotional Dimension
How the mind and body interact to affect body function and to respond to body conditions also influences health. Long-term stress affects the body systems and anxiety affects health habits; conversely, calm acceptance and relaxation can change body responses to illness.
Intellectual Dimension
The intellectual dimension encompasses cognitive abilities, educational background and past experiences. These influence a client's responses to teaching about health and reactions to health care during illness. They also play a major role in health behaviors.
Environmental Dimension
The environment has many influences on health and illness. Housing, sanitation, climate, and pollution of air, food and water are aspects of environmental dimension.
Sociocultural Dimension
Health practices and beliefs are strongly influenced by a person's economic level, life-style, family and culture. Low-income groups are less likely to seek health care to prevent or treat illness: high income groups are more prone "to stress-related habits and illness. The family and the culture to which the person belongs determine patterns of living and values about health and illness that are often unalterable.
Spiritual Dimension
Spiritual and religious beliefs and values are important components of the way the person behaves in health and illness.
Stages of Illness Behavior
Symptom Experience
Assumption of the Sick Role
Medical Care Contact
Dependent Client Role
Recovery and Rehabilitation
Symptom Experience
The person is aware that "something is wrong". A person usually recognizes a physical sensation or a limitation in functioning but does not suspect a specific diagnosis. The person's perception of a symptom includes awareness of a physical change such as pain, a rash or a lump; evaluation of this change and a decision that it is a symptom of an illness, and an emotional response.
Assumption of the Sick Role
If symptoms persist and become severe, clients assume the sick role. At this point the illness becomes a social phenomenon, and sick people seek confirmation from their families and social groups that they are indeed ill and that they be excused from normal duties and role expectations.
Medical Care Contact
If symptoms persist despite the home remedies, become severe, or require emergency care, the person is motivated to seek professional health services. In this stage the client seeks expert acknowledgement of the illness as well as the treatment.
Dependent Client Role
The client depends on health care professionals for the relief of symptoms. The client accepts care, sympathy and protection from the demands and stresses of life. A client can adopt the dependent role in a health care institution, at home or in a community setting. The client must also adjust to the disruption of a daily schedule.
Recovery and Rehabilitation
This stage can arrive suddenly, such as when the symptoms disappeared. In the case of chronic illness, the final stage may involve an adjustment to prolonged reduction in health and functioning.
Levels of Prevention
Primary Prevention
Secondary Prevention
Tertiary Prevention
Primary Prevention
Providing specific protection against disease to prevent its occurrence is the most desirable form of prevention. Primary preventive efforts spare the client the cost, discomfort and the threat to the quality of life that illness poses or at least delay the onset of illness. Preventive measures consists of counselling, education and adoption of specific health practices or changes in lifestyle.
Secondary Prevention
It consist of organized, direct screening efforts or education of the public to promote early case finding of an individual with disease so that prompt intervention can be instituted to halt pathologic processes and limit disability. Early diagnosis of a health problem can decrease the catastrophic effects that might otherwise result for the individual and the family from advanced illness and its many complications.
Tertiary Prevention
It begins early in the period of recovery from illness and consists of such activities as consistent and appropriate administration of medications to optimize therapeutic effects, moving and positioning to prevent complications of immobility and passive and active exercises to prevent disability. Continuing health supervision during rehabilitation to restore an individual to an optimal level of functioning. Minimizing residual disability and helping the client learn to live productively with limitations are the goals of tertiary prevention.
This RLE will help the students to apply the principles of medical asepsis in everyday living to promote and maintain heath.
Specific Objectives
Define relevant terms
Identify two types of asepsis
Describe the importance of medical asepsis
Enumerate and explain the principles of medical asepsis
Demonstrate proper handwashing
Asepsis
A condition in which there is absence of disease producing microorganism
Sepsis
Presence of infection
Microorganisms
Minute living bodies visible under the microscope
Pathogens
Disease-producing microorganisms
Infection
A disease state resulting from pathogens present in the body
Types of Asepsis
Medical asepsis (clean technique)
Surgical asepsis (sterile technique)
Medical asepsis (clean technique)
Consists of measures/ practices designed to reduce the number of microorganisms present, their growths, and their transfer
Surgical asepsis (sterile technique)
Consists of measures to eliminate all microorganisms in the environment whether they are harmless or disease producing
Principles of Medical Asepsis
Microorganisms are moved through space on air currents
Microorganisms are transferred from one surface to another whenever objects touch
Microorganisms are transferred by gravity when one item is held over/above another
Microorganisms are released into the air on droplet nuclei whenever a person breathes or speaks
Proper handwashing removes many of the microorganisms that would be transferred by the hand from one object to another
Principles of Handwashing
Handwashing should take about 2-5 minutes
If the hands are dirty, or heavily contaminated, they should be cleaned ever thoroughly
Soaps, detergents and water remain among the best cleaning agents available
Soaped hands should be rinsed, if possible, under running water
Tap water has the ideal temperature for washing the hands
Handwashing should be done before eating, after using the toilet, after hands have come in contact with any unclean object or equipment