Consequences of the Biomedical Model for Understanding Health and Illness in Australia

Running head: HEALTH SOCIOLOGY
Using Functionalism and Social Constructionism discuss the consequences of the
biomedical model for understanding health and illness in Australia
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HCS210 Assessment One

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HEALTH SOCIOLOGY
Introduction
Health is often viewed as an individual trait that arises from the health lifestyle
choices and individual physiology. Sociological research has contributed towards
improving the overall definition of health and well-being by conducting studies in the
social structure, cultural impact on health and prevalence of illness among
individuals along with acceptance and availability of treatment (Hutton, 2014). The
following essay aims to analyze the consequences of the biomedical model for
understanding health and illness in Australia by the use of functionalism and social
constructionism theory of health. Essay will initiate with defining social determinants
of health followed by biomedical model of health and its limitations. At the end, the
essay will highlight functionalism and social constructionism theory of health in the
promotion of health and well-being. The essay will thus help to highlight the
importance of society in health and thereby helping to bring change in the Australian
healthcare.
Discussion
Sociology and the role of perspectives
Sociology deals with study of social life of a population or group of individuals
residing in a particular area. It is an important focus for the healthcare professionals
as the social factors cast a significant influence on over any healthcare conditions. It
is also associated with how those healthcare conditions are treated in different
regions. The inherent relationship between sociology and health can be defined by
the social determinants of health (SDHs) (Weiss & Lonnquist, 2017). According to
the World Health Organization (WHO) (2019) the social determinants of health are
defined as the conditions under which an individual is born, then grow, live, work and
ultimately ages. These circumstances are modulated by distribution of the financial
resources like money, power (social position), resources for the daily living both at
global, national and at local level. In-equal distributions of the SDHs are mainly
responsible for the generation of the health-related inequalities, unfair and avoidable
differences in the health status of the individuals residing in same countries or in
different geographic location. The main social determinants of health are the social
and the economic life, the physical environment and individual characteristic of the
HCS210 Assessment One

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HEALTH SOCIOLOGY
person and his or her behavior. The social and the economic life of individuals is
governed by higher income and the social status. Greater the gap between the
richest and the poorest person, greater is the difference between the health statuses.
Education is also an important social factor. Low level of education is associated with
poor health status and it is linked with increased generation or stress and self-
confidence leading to poor mental health status World Health Organization (WHO),
2018). The physical environment of a society under which a person is residing is
linked to safe supply of water, clean air, and hygienic living and working
environment. Clean environment leads to better health related outcomes. The social
support networks is governed by support coming from the family members
communities and friends for the better healthcare supports. Healthcare services
prevalent in the society also help to modulate the healthcare outcome of the
residents (World Health Organization (WHO), 2018). Sutherland et al. (2017) are of
the opinion that Aboriginals and the Torres Strait Islander residing in Australia hails
from poor socio-economic status government by lack of proper education,
employment and unhealthy lifestyle habits leading poor health related outcomes.
Different approaches to sociological analysis are known as sociological
perspectives. Two sociological perspective of health is Functionalism perspective
and Social Constructionism perspective. Under the functionalist model, Parsons
argued that health-related illness is a kind form of deviance that leads to disturbance
in the overall social function of an individual and thereby hampering normal social
activities (Boden, Berenbaum & Gross, 2016). Social constructionism perspective of
health gives importance to the socio-cultural aspects of the discipline’s approach
leading to physical, objectively definable phenomena (Tiefer, 2018).
Inclusion of the biomedical model and the social determinants of health
Modern Western Medicine of Health and Illness is a dominant theory of
biochemical model of health. This biochemical model presumes that illness results
from physiological abnormalities and malfunctioning and can be fixed by restoring
the biochemical or physiological health condition. It considers the human body with a
machine. Just like a fixing of parts of machine leads to restoring of the machine
functionality, restoring the bodily function will led to curing of the diseasing and thus
promotion health. Under biomedical model, restoration of human body function is
done the use of drugs. The biochemical model is also based on the belief that there
HCS210 Assessment One