4.2 Models of Health

Nursing Models

The nursing models of health draw from various frameworks, such as the Health Belief Model, the Health Promotion Model, the Holistic Health Model, and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, to guide nursing practice and provide comprehensive care to patients. These models emphasize the importance of considering the whole person and taking a holistic approach to health and wellness. Nursing models of health recognize the importance of personal and environmental factors in shaping health behaviors and outcomes. By incorporating these models into the practice, nurses can provide patient-centered care (PCC) and promote optimal health outcomes for the patients. Patient-centered care focuses on the individual and that individual’s specific healthcare needs, while encouraging the individual’s active participation in their own medical plan.

Health Belief Model

The Health Belief Model (HBM) (Figure 4.3) is a widely recognized model of health that emphasizes the importance of an individual’s beliefs and attitudes in shaping health behaviors. It includes six concepts: perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits, perceived barriers, self-efficacy, and cues to action (Rural Health Information Hub, 2023). The HBM recognizes that individuals are more likely to engage in healthy behaviors when they perceive a threat to their health and believe that taking action will be beneficial in reducing that threat. An example of this behavior is when people quit smoking because they believe it will improve their health. The model also takes into account an individual’s perceived barriers to taking action and their self-efficacy or confidence in their ability to make changes. The HBM is frequently used in health promotion and disease prevention programs to help individuals understand the importance of taking action to protect and promote their health. By focusing on an individual’s beliefs and attitudes, the HBM can help nurses tailor interventions to meet the specific needs and concerns of each patient.

Figure 4.3 The Health Belief Model says that a patient’s personal assumptions will influence their health interventions and their actions regarding their health plans. (attribution: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC BY 4.0 license)

Link to Learning

The Health Belief Model is one of the most used models. It addresses health behavior change, health promotion, and disease prevention. Some other theories and models used for health behavior change, health promotion, and disease prevention programs include Ecological Models, the Stages of Change Model (Transtheoretical Model), Social Cognitive Theory, and the Theory of Reasoned Action/Planned Behavior.

Health Promotion Model

The Health Promotion Model (HPM) (Figure 4.4) is another widely recognized model of health that takes a holistic approach to health and wellness. It focuses on three areas: individual characteristics and experiences, behavior-specific cognitions and affect, and behavioral outcomes (Chen & Hsieh, 2021). This model emphasizes the importance of personal and environmental factors in shaping health behaviors and outcomes. The HPM recognizes that individuals are more likely to engage in healthy behaviors when they feel empowered to take control of their health and have access to supportive environments that promote health. The model also highlights the importance of ongoing education and skill building to promote long-term behavior change. The HPM is frequently used in health promotion and disease prevention programs such as lung cancer screening programs and mammogram screening programs to help individuals understand the importance of making healthy choices and to provide them with the tools and resources they need to make those choices. By taking a holistic approach to health promotion, the HPM can help individuals achieve optimal health and well-being.

Figure 4.4 The Health Promotion Model states that individuals’ health-promoting behaviors are impacted by their characteristics and experiences, as well as their behavior-specific cognitions and affect. (attribution: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC BY 4.0 license)

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (Figure 4.5) is a well-known model of health that describes human needs and motivations. It is a pyramid-shaped model that includes five levels of needs: physiological needs, safety needs, love and belonging needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs (Hayre-Kwan et al., 2021). The model suggests that individuals must satisfy their lower-level needs before they can move on to meet higher-level needs (Hayre-Kwan et al., 2021). By understanding the hierarchy of needs, nurses can identify the needs of their patients, provide care that meets those needs, and support their patients’ overall well-being.

Figure 4.5 Maslow’s hierarchy of needs suggests that individuals’ physiological needs should be satisfied before their security, social, esteem, and self-actualization needs are met. (credit: modification of work from Psychology 2e. attribution: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC BY 4.0 license)

Medical Models

The medical models of health and wellness are approaches to understanding and treating illness. Medical models view health as the absence of disease or illness and focus on identifying and treating physical symptoms and underlying medical conditions through medical interventions, such as medications, surgeries, and other medical procedures. Medical models also emphasize the importance of preventive measures, such as vaccinations, regular health screenings, and lifestyle modifications, to maintain and promote optimal physical health.

Models of Health and Illness

Models of health and illness are frameworks used to understand and explain the complex interactions between biological, psychological, social, and environmental factors that contribute to a person’s health status. They are useful in understanding the complexities of how health is defined, maintained, and influenced by different factors and are essential for guiding research, clinical practice, and public health interventions. Some of the most commonly used models of health and illness include the biomedical model, psychosomatic model, and existential model.

The biomedical model is a traditional approach to health care that focuses on diagnosing and treating specific physical diseases or disorders using medical interventions such as drugs or surgery. The psychosomatic model stands on the idea that psychological factors, such as emotions, beliefs, and personality traits, can have a direct impact on physical health. The existential model is a philosophical and psychological approach that emphasizes the subjective experience of individual existence and the search for meaning in life. These models, summarized in Table 4.5, provide different lenses through which to understand and approach health and illness. Understanding their different perspectives can help individuals, nurses, and policymakers better understand the complex nature of health and illness and develop more effective strategies for promoting health and preventing disease.