HLTA02 Week 2 PDF

HLTA02 explores theories, contemporary themes, and analytical methodologies associated with the study of health-related matters. Areas of focus → various determinants of health, health technology, public health (epidemiology) and global health. HLTA03 seeks to provide an understanding of inquiry an...

HLTA02 explores theories, contemporary themes, and analytical methodologies associated with the study of health-related matters. Areas of focus → various determinants of health, health technology, public health (epidemiology) and global health. HLTA03 seeks to provide an understanding of inquiry and analysis, practical applications, and policy formulation. Areas of focus → research methodology, health care systems, political systems, and ethical considerations Introduction to Health Studies Learning Objectives : ❖ Explore illness, medicine and the field of health studies ❖ Discuss working within and across disciplines in health studies ❖ Introduce basic approaches to conducting health research Health Studies : ❖ Addresses health, illness and medicine through a social science, humanities, or interdisciplinary lens ❖ Health studies researchers are interested in exploring issues related to health at the individual, cultural, economical, political, environmental and international levels. Disciplines : Health sciences ❖ A collection of disciplines that support and constitute _________ ❖ Disciplines based around ____________ categories such as nursing, occupational therapy, and pharmacy ❖ Disciplines based around medical categories and “___________” (often about aspects of the body) including genetics, immunology, and microbiology ❖ Disciplines based around __________ specialties (types of services) including geriatrics, family practice, and mental health care Disciplines Also composed of social science sub-disciplines, including: ❖ Sociology ❖ Health geography ❖ Medical anthropology ❖ Health psychology ❖ Health economics Health Studies Use… Quantitative Data ❖ Health records and statistics ❖ Census data ❖ Survey questionnaires Qualitative Data ❖ Interviews ❖ Focus groups ❖ Observation techniques ❖ Document analysis Health Studies ❖ Data derived from qualitative research is preferred as this data provides in-depth and person-sensitive perspectives that reveal human thoughts, feelings, and emotions. Defining Health ❖ The Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion affirms social, economic and environmental aspects of ‘health’. ❖ This important Canadian document states that, in order to be healthy, “an individual or group must be able to identify and to realize aspirations, to satisfy needs, and to change or cope with the environment”. ❖ In this way, health is seen as a resource or an asset that helps us lead our everyday lives. Health is seen as a positive concept that emphasizes social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities. Defining Health (1) WHO Definition of Health (1) (1948): ❖ Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well being, and not just the absence of disease or infirmity ❖ (1) Wellbeing A meaningful state of life; an immediate experience and feeling that can arise in a moment Defining Health (2) Alternative definition (2) (Huber and colleagues, 2011): ❖ The capacity to adapt and self-manage in the face of physical, mental, and social challenges Defining Health (3) Alternative definition (3) (Wills, Watson & ScottSamuel): ❖ Health is a condition in which people achieve control over their lives due to the equitable distribution of power and resources. Health is thus a collective value; my health cannot be at the expense of others, nor through the excessive use of natural resources Why Health Studies? Consider the following: ❖ Health and illness have social, political, cultural, and economic dimensions that extend beyond the biomedical perspective ❖ Our socio-cultural practices influence our definitions of health and our responses to illness ❖ It is important to challenge knowledge and practices that are taken for granted, while exploring different frameworks of health and illness Being Critical Critical thinking ❖ Requires you to reflect on information, use judgment skills, and engage in higher levels of thinking, including analysis, interpretation, inference, evaluation, and explanation, to formulate reliable decisions Critical approaches in health are characterized by a number of dimensions ❖ E.g. Address pressing social and health issues that negatively affect individuals and populations Disciplinary Approaches to Health Studies Disciplinarity : ❖ The notion that different disciplines have unique ways of looking at a problem ❖ Each expert’s disciplinary knowledge and methodological tools shape the approach to solving the problem ❖ Every expert may reach a separate conclusion regarding the primary cause of complex problems Disciplinary Approaches (2) ❖ Demographic change, shifting life trajectories, and new forms of knowledge have made health an increasingly complex matter. ❖ There is an increasing recognition that society and social issues are central to both the causes and the remedies of health problems. ❖ The complex matter of health is best debated and discussed from a range of academic disciplines and theoretical starting points. Contributions to Health Studies Social sciences : ❖ Sociology, psychology, geography, political science, anthropology Humanities : ❖ English, history, the arts Conceptually based fields : ❖ Draws attention to the relationship between broader social structures and individual or local experiences ❖ E.g. cultural studies, women’s studies, Aboriginal studies Professional practice disciplines : ❖ Relates to organizational practices and the relationships between professionals and their clients o E.g. Nursing, social work, rehabilitation science Challenges ❖ The problem with looking at health through a discipline specific lens is that disciplines become deeply rooted in “disciplinary knowledge.” ❖ This knowledge is then often taken for granted as “true,” but may lead practitioners to overlook other key considerations. Disciplinary Boundaries Much of what is written and taught in health studies takes place through the lens of a particular discipline such as: o Sociology ▪ The study of institutions and the “subject” o Health psychology ▪ Explores how people think and behave in relation to health and illness o Geography ▪ Focuses on how space and place affect people’s wellbeing For example: If I posed this research question: Why are there excessively high rates of obesity in community X? Disciplinary Boundaries (2) ❖ The concept of health cannot be defined in biomedical terms alone: culture, politics, economics, and other social factors all affect our understanding of what it means to be healthy (or ill). ❖ Approaching health solely through one discipline cannot fully address its complexity. ❖ Increasingly, in both health care settings and the field of critical health studies, researchers are choosing to adopt perspectives that transcend individual disciplines. Types of Collaboration in Health Studies ❖ Multidisciplinary ❖ Interdisciplinary ❖ Transdisciplinary Types of Collaboration in Health Studies Multidisciplinary : ❖ Involves several disciplines ❖ Little interaction between researchers who work independently Interdisciplinary : ❖ Involves several disciplines ❖ Theories and methods from each discipline inform the others Aim of my PhD Thesis: To develop a ‘risk calculator’ that estimates future cardiovascular events (e.g. heart attack, stroke) in people living with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis Transdisciplinary ❖ Involves several disciplines ❖ Researchers work beyond the limits of these fields Challenges of Collaborative Approaches ❖ Any particular phenomenon introduces complex dynamics that influence the research question, type of collaboration, and the research methods used. ❖ Researchers and students must consider issues such as power and structures that facilitate and block access to collaboration and questions of what is possible within a particular context. How to Conduct Health Research Develop a Research Question ❖ There is no universal set of criteria for a good research question ❖ Different disciplines have different priorities and requirements ❖ For example, a good research question for a history paper will differ from a good research question for a biology paper ❖ In general, a good research question should be: Clear and focused Not too broad and not too narrow Not too easy to answer (and not too difficult to answer!) Researchable Analytical rather than descriptive