DEFINITION OF HEALTH AND HEALTH-RELATED ASPECTS
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (1977)
HEALTH is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
UNIVERSITY OF NEWCASTLE FACULTY OF MEDICINE (1978)
HEALTH is a condition of soundness of body and mind which enables their functions to be optimally discharged.
HEALTH NEEDS are the requirements of individuals and groups in relation to maintenance or achievement of health.
HEALTH CARE includes all factors (physical, psychological, social, environment) which contribute positively to health.
HEALTH CARE DELIVERY includes all the mechanisms by which agencies external to the individual contribute to his health.
WILLIAM G. HARLESS (1977)
HEALTH may be defined as harmony of the whole body - body, mind, emotions, senses, spirit. (Illness is disharmony of the whole person which has meaning in the context of the total life experience of the individual. Physical disease and emotional suffering have an individual message for each patient.)
THE HEALTH CARE SITUATION includes the health care professionals with medical expertise and knowledge of biological systems, and the patient with internal healing resources and knowledge of his total life situation, which includes the illness. The purpose of the humanistic health care situation is synthesis of these dimensions through open sharing of information, free choice, and personal involvement of the patient and the practitioner.
HEALING. The patient is not simply a body with a disease and the humanistic health professional is not simply a scientific problem solver with knowledge of medicine. Both patient and health professional are whole human beings and the full human potential of their relationship depends on their sharing of medical knowledge and expertise and on their total human interaction.
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