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     As defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” (WHO, 1948). Many limitations are noted with this definition of health, mainly that it deems most of the population as unhealthy. I believe that while this definition has not been changed since coined in 1948, there are more up to date theories which one can call upon when trying to define health. According to WHO, in order for someone to have “health” they must have no ailments and complete absence of disease. I feel that the relevance of this definition of health is very limited and basically states that unless a person has complete absence of disease, they cannot be deemed healthy. For example, if a person has a chronic disease that is controlled with medication or treatment/therapy it is unjust to deem them as not having health or being healthy. Let's say a person has hypertension and type 1 diabetes, both controlled with medications or someone with a mental illness controlled with meditation and therapy, is it fair to identify these individuals as unhealthy? I think not. Instead, these individuals should be able to determine their degree of health or feeling unhealthy on an individual basis. Bircher and Kuruvilla (2014) discuss how the WHO definition of health is inadequate for individuals with chronic conditions. The authors recommend a definition of health that brings a person to a state of equilibrium, taking into account that chronic conditions can be controlled and the person can still feel healthy. 

 

     While the WHO definition of health has not changed in many years, many critics have attempted to define health in their own ways. One definition is proposed by Lennart Nordenfelt who discussed that in order for a person to be considered healthy, a person must have the ability to reach a set of vital goals. These vital goals were described as a “state of affairs which is either a component of or otherwise necessary for the person's living a minimally decent life” (Nordenfelt, 2007). Nordenfelt believed that health can be defined as the ability to reach these vital goals in life and health is not merely the complete absence of disease as was described by WHO (Venkatapuram, 2013). Nordenfelt felt that an individual should be in control of their own health and be able to deem themselves as healthy based on meeting self determined vital goals. I feel this definition of health gives people a more control in their own ability to define themselves as healthy.  

 

     A more recent definition of health, which I believe takes into account modern day healthcare advances is the Meikirch model of health developed by Bircher and Kuruvilla (2014). This model described a framework for health and disease that views health as a complex adaptive system.The Meikirch model includes features of the WHO definition, but goes further and identify different components. The model uses five components to define health, these include: The demands of life, an individual’s biological and personally acquired potentials, and the social and environmental determinants of health. It imposes that if a person is able to appropriately manage all five components then that person is in a state of health. It is when these become unmanageable that a person is said to be unhealthy. The Meikirch model states “Health is a dynamic state of well-being emergent from conducive interactions between an individual’s potentials, life’s demands, and social and environmental determinants. Health results throughout the life course when an individual’s potentials – and social and environmental determinants – suffice to respond satisfactorily to the demands of life. Life’s demands can be physiological, psychosocial, or environmental and vary across individuals and contexts but, in every case, unsatisfactory responses lead to disease” (Muacevic and Adler, 2017). 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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References

 

Bircher, J. & Kuruvilla, S. (2014). Defining health by addressing individual, social, and                                      environmental determinants: New opportunities for health care and public health. Journal of         

      Public Health Policy, 35(3), 363-386.

 

Muacevic, A. and J.R. Adler. (2017). Will the Meikirch Model, a New Framework for Health,                              Induce a Paradigm Shift in Healthcare? Cureus, 9(3), 1081.

 

Nordenfelt, L. (2007) The concepts of health and illness revisited. Medicine, Healthcare and

     Philosophy 10(1), 5-10

 

Venkatapuram, S (2013). Health, Vital Goals, and Central Human Capabilities. Bioethics, 27(5),

     271-279.

 

World Health Organization. (1948). Who we are: Constitution. https://www.who.int/about/who-                 we-are/constitution