PS285 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: Patient Participation, Aromatherapy, Reflexology
Document Summary
The way people think about health, become ill and react to illness is rooted in broader health belief systems that are immersed in culture. Health belief systems: popular sector: refers to the lay cultural arena where illness is first denied and health care activities initiated, professional sector: refers to the organized healing professions, their representations and actions. Western health belief systems: classical views of health: Galenic medicine: the balance of four bodily fluids or humours: yellow and black bile, phlegm, and blood; the bodily fluids have been linked to four season (ex. Excess of phlegm was common in winter leading to colds); the four primary conditions (i. e. hot, cold, wet and dry); and the four elements (i. e. air, fire, earth and water). Medieval scholars added four temperatures (i. e. choleric, sanguine, melancholic, and phlegmatic) Ascetic tradition scorned concern for the body and instead o promoted acts such as fasting and physical suffering, which supposedly led to spirituality.
