What is the biomedical model?
The biomedical model of medicine can be understood in terms of its answers to the following questions:
What causes illness? According to the biomedical model of medicine, diseases either come from outside the body, invade the body and cause physical changes within the body, or originate as internal involuntary physical changes. Such diseases may be caused by several factors such as chemical imbalances, bacteria, viruses and genetic predisposition.
Who is responsible for illness? Because illness is seen as arising from biological changes beyond their control, individuals are not seen as responsible for their illness. They are regarded as victims of some external force causing internal changes.
How should illness be treated? The biomedical model regards treatment in terms (more…)
