the medical model and sociological model

snowfreeze, BSN, RN · Nov 10, 2007

What do you find in your nursing textbook? I would start from there and research what was stated to further outline each model. How are you approaching each model outline? as a student learning or as a nurse teaching?

Your question is very vague so I really cannot help you at this time.

nghtfltguy, BSN, RN · Nov 10, 2007

well...

if the model you are talking about is the human body....

there is no sociolgical aspect to it

there is the posterior/anterior

dorsal... ventral... blahhh. blahh

only 1 human body...

its not sociological

its physical..

wait... unless you are talking about the sociological aspect of how we percieve the human body....but thats kinda psych too!!

the human body is a physical thing.... nothing more

:cool:

outcomesfirst, BSN, RN · Nov 10, 2007

Think of the medical model as a tree with a trunk and many branches. Think of the sociological model as a tree, in a pasture with horses and sheep, with a river on one side and a house on the other, and a barn in a field, with a road.......

abooker · Nov 10, 2007

Look at the MRC Social and Public Health Sciences Unit web site. It's located at the University of Glascow in Scotland, and is affiliated with the Division of Community Based Sciences:

http://www.sphsu.mrc.ac.uk/

I'm ignorant about the nursing culture in Scotland, but I'm suspecting Professor VickyRN's post about having family members at the bedside of seriously ill patients might reflect a sociological model perspective:

https://allnurses.com/forums/f300/family-focused-care-adult-critical-care-260500.html

For a possible example of the medical model, look at Chron's Disease here:

http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/crohns_ez/index.htm

I chose Chron's Disease because it's discussed as an example of medical model vs. nursing model here: https://allnurses.com/forums/f8/medical-model-vs-nursing-model-huh-215215.html

The "right" answer in many schools here is that the sociological model is the only correct model and should define nursing as a profession. In my experience, a patient with a mecial problem, a problem with "the tree with many branches" really doesn't care about the river and the house with a barn and a field and a road ... they want to deal with the tree. They are profoundly aware of what diarrhea is, and we should help them with barrier cream and follow the doctor or nurse practitioner's orders, but the patient's and his or her stakeholder's questions and concerns revolve around that tree. For our patient's sake, we need to know about the tree, the "knowledge" level technical stuff. But if your instructor calls himself or herself a "facilitator" and your book is full of buzz words like "patient centered" and "holistic" and "paradigm" and equates "traditional" with "outmoded", praise the sociological model profusely in your paper and you'll be fine.

outcomesfirst, BSN, RN · Nov 10, 2007

Actually, maybe the water in the river has a poison making the tree ill, or maybe there is a problem in the house or barn.

My point was a sociological perspective considers factors outside of the obvious physical framework. I think seeking to understand the difference in perspective was the topic. Not a right or wrong answer for a paper. That is a different discussion :)

abooker · Nov 10, 2007

I fervently agree with you about the role of the sociological perspective in nursing practice. Expert nurses like you (23 years of experience - wow!) You have the tools and the training and the experience to understand about the water in the river, or the house, or the barn. Novice nurses like me (1 year of experience) or a second year student like Babydoll19 aren't equipped, yet, to understand the sociological model from a higher-level, "evaluation" perspective such as the NCLEX demands.

Babydoll19 looked on various nursing sites and didn't find what she needed. Expert nurses of course consider factors outside of the obvious physical framework. It isn't talked about explicitly, because nurses are beyond models - that's a nursing education thing.

Because the question relates to writing a paper, I don't see it as a nursing question, but as an education question. They're different animals. There are right and wrong answers in nursing education, and she's in school, and she's writing a paper. She's got to agree with the teacher or the textbook or she won't succeed. Seeking to understand a difference in perspective is an admirable goal, but it's most likely beyond the scope of a second-year paper. We're supposed to parrot the teacher or the textbook to reflect understanding, and if that differs from the behavioral goals of the textbook and the teacher she won't do well. She's on a deadline - her essay is due soon. I interpreted the topic as "discuss two models" rather than "understand two models." The sociological perspective in education considers factors outside of the obvious physical framework, too. And there are absolutely "best answers" in education (whole goal of NCLEX is to assess this), and yeah, that *is* a different discussion. Sorry if I misunderstood the question.