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Medical Model

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Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology

Synonyms

Biomedical model; Disease model

Definition

The medical model is a traditional approach to health and healing focused on identifying symptoms and pathology using standardized measures and procedures in order to treat the underlying disease or alleviate the presenting symptoms. Weakness of the model: (1) it supports the false notion of dualism in health, whereby biological and psychological/behavioral problems are treated separately; (2) overemphasis on pathology and diagnosis ignoring societal and environmental factors affecting functioning; (3) overemphasis on disability and impairment rather than on the individual’s abilities and strengths; and (4) promotes paternalism within medicine rather than patient empowerment.

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References and Readings

  • Falvo, D. R. (2013). Medical and psychosocial aspects of chronic illness and disability (5th ed.). Burlington: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.

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  • Hofmann, B. (2005). Simplified models of the relationship between health and disease. Theoretical Medicine, 26, 355–377.

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  • Olson, K., Young, R. A., & Schultz, I. Z. (Eds.). (2015). Handbook of qualitative health research for evidence-based practice: 2016. New York: Springer.

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  • Shah, P., & Mountain, D. (2007). The medical model is dead – long live the medical model. British Journal of Psychiatry, 191, 375–377.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Orlando Sánchez

  2. Harry S. Truman Memorial, Columbia, MO, USA

    Martha Brownlee-Duffeck

Authors
  1. Orlando Sánchez
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  2. Martha Brownlee-Duffeck
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Orlando Sánchez .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA

    Jeffrey S. Kreutzer

  2. Kessler Foundation, Pleasant Valley Way, West Orange, NJ, USA

    John DeLuca

  3. Independent Practice, Wynnewood, PA, USA

    Bruce Caplan

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Sánchez, O., Brownlee-Duffeck, M. (2018). Medical Model. In: Kreutzer, J.S., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_2131

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