Social Sciences and Medicine:
Health cannot be isolated from its social context. Social, cultural, educational, economic, political,
religious factors have a direct bearing on the incidence, prevalence, course and outcome of a wide variety
of all diseases and health problems.
The patient is no longer considered as one who is under strict laboratory control (i.e. not a lab animal or a
case) but, an individual with personal characteristics, variable habits, customs and beliefs all are reacting
on his body and mind.
*Good doctors are being identified as those
who treat people, and bad doctors as those who treat cases.
Definition of terms:
Society: an organization of member agents. It is a system of social relationships between individuals.
Community: The people living in a particular place or region and usually linked by common interests. So
it is a social group determined by geographical boundaries and or common values of interests .
Socialism: Any economic policy that favors the use of belongings and resources of the country for the
public welfare. It is a system of production and distribution based on social ownership for raising the
living standard of the working class
Capitalism: which is based on private ownership of the means of the production and aims at maximum
private profit at the expense of the working class
Socialization: The process by which an individual gradually acquires culture (beliefs, customs, traditions
and prejudices) and becomes a member of a social group. It includes 2 parts:
Primary socialization: When a child first grow and be a member of his family, some of these beliefs and
customs may be dangerous to his health as smoking , and hysteria.
Secondary socialization: A process which operates through a person whole life i.e. when being a member
of a new group or society as being a doctor (may be + or -)
Norms of Society: the standard of behavior expected from a person by their social group.
Deviance: departure from accepted behaviors and it includes anything from bad table manner to murder.
Authority: is the power of influence which some people have over the others which is generally
accepted. It is of different types as:
Traditional authority (e.g. the father in the family).
Bureaucratic authority (e.g. the manager in institute).
Charismatic authority (e.g. the religious leader).
Professional authority (e.g. the senior in a hospital).
Race: When population differentiated according to certain biological characteristics only.
Ethnics: When population differentiated according to certain cultural aspect of racial groups.
Definition of Culture
the organization of shared experience which determine our patterns of thinking and feeling, it is socially
learned, shared and reinforced. It guides our daily behavior (we recognize the situation and behave
automatically).
Definition of psychology:
"The study of human behavior- of how people behave and why they behave in just the way they do".
Healthy behavior:
Refers to those activities people undertake (1) to avoid disease and (2) to detect asymptomatic infections
(or diseases) through appropriate screening test. e.g. routine lab check. Illness behaviors:
"How people react to illness". Generally people wait and symptoms, if persist, then they tend to (1) take
home remedy, or (2) take advice of folk medicine, or (3) ask help of modern medicine.
Treatment behavior:
“Those activities used to cure diseases and restore health“ It is important that patient should seek medical
advice, take drugs as prescribed, and return to test for cure.
the goal of psychology is to find relations between stimuli and responses.
Causes:
1. Environmental stimuli: as sight, smell and touch.
2. Emotions and feelings: as anger, joy and hunger.
3. Needs: as eat, drink and dress.
4. Motivations: " inner force which drives an individual to a certain action" as success in the examination,
to have a wealth.
5. Intellectual perception: perception, thinking and reasoning. Behaviors in general are responses (results)
for certain causes (stimuli), the goal of psychology is to find relations between stimuli and responses.
Responses:
1. Physical responses : as habits, skills.
2. Organic responses: as emotions, feelings and tensions.
3. Intellectual responses: as perceptions, thinking and reasoning.
Anxiety: May manifest as increase in pulse, breathing, flushing etc. Patients admitted to hospital are
usually anxious, and under tension so doctor must understand patients anxiety and give him reassurance.
* A kind word from the doctor like a magic and gives the patient considerable relief from emotional
anxiety.
Control of emotion:
A well-adjusted and mentally healthy person is one who is able to keep his emotions under control.
The following tips may help in controlling one's emotions:
1. Cultivate hobbies, good habits of reading and recreations.
2. Adopt a philosophy for life in order to adopt mental conflicts.
3. Try to understand your own limitations.
4. Develop a sense of humor.