Book for review: iii "Philosophy of Care - New Approaches to Vulnerability, Otherness and Therapy"

Before moving beyond Pierron's 1st chapter (the whole book is very worth reading), there is much that reminds me of institutional care:

https://winwickremembered.org.uk/

Recognition of the sub-standard cockroach 'co-habiting' environment away from the entrance corridor, quality of life, task oriented, de-personalising, stagnant, passive, pervasive sense of hopelessness and helplessness. There was a chink of light. 

As registered mental health student's we were on a crusade. Carrying a torch, lit outside in the community to help open the doors to community care.

 On trips outside, gradually the institutional skin sloughed off, to reveal the person - the individual came alive (even through medication). 

'Bill' had a sense of humour, a lovely smile. He'd had the prospect of another life. So many people there for so long: too long. Potential unrealised?

"To be in contact with the other in care is not to exercise a hold over them." p.16. 

The problem is - within institutions this can be forgotten and lost:

"To suspect a substituting mode of solicitude (cf. Heidegger) of being a highhanded charitable hold over someone invites one to consider the ethical and political fecundity of a solicitude which looks ahead. To think through this alternative would amount to unmasking the mechanisms of domination, whether voluntary and involuntary - naturalisation of roles, masculine domination, organisational violence, etc, - at work in care. Doing so politicizes care, enabling it to overcome that democratic optimism which doesn't want to recognize that violence is part of human history (Merleau-Ponty 1996: 124-125), that violence insinuates^ itself into care relations, and, as such, comes under the sway of what Merleau-Ponty called the 'maleficence of living among many' (maléfice de la vie à plusieurs)." p.16. 

^The need to be aware of subtle abuse? 

My notes for chapter 2 'From an Anthropology of Vulnerability to the Ethics of Care' by João Maria André, reflects a lot on relationality, and maps which I've drawn: "(identity is always dialogical identity)" and "how we map ourselves". Again this helps my (other) current reading and draft work. There's time here, plus "there is no such thing as abstract vulnerability - vulnerability is necessarily concrete". p.25. I don't think André mentions future generations but I've added a note; 'I-we' too. There's a triple axis, and more encouragement as Tronto and Gilligan feature. Heidegger's reference to Hyginus' Fable 220 (in which Care moulds man out of clay, Jove grants it spirit, and Earth gives him body, with Care being assigned the task of keeping him alive." (Gaia?) p.26.

As in chapter 1, and previously reviewed text 'General Psychotherapy', the term 'constellation' appears. In chapter 2 it is expanded (with reference to Corine Pelluchon); leading us to "appreciation of the world, and self-care as care for the world" p.29. So, planetary health too. With Hodges' model purposed (1/4) to help bridge the theory - practice gap; this perennial problem exhibits existential relevance here (p.27). We by-passed biopolitics on page 17, but  the interrelation of psychosocial and other examples informs the text (philosophy). As I scribbled, Hodges' model is simultaneously a space for resonance and unconditional positive regard (pp.30-31). Authors inevitably find themselves deliberating upon dualisms, Descartes of course, plus Spinoza and others. Entralgo is nails the duality: "the aim of caring is to lead the I from being 'a body that says I' to a learning how to progressively become, and define itself as, 'a body that says we'". p.35.

Braga, J. & Santiago de Carvalho, M. (Eds.), Philosophy of care: New approaches to vulnerability, otherness therapy. Springer. 

Many thanks again to Springer for my copy.

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relational 'I' - mind  individual vulnerability intention affection - as movement	climate change 'I' - body maps - cartography Planetary Health action - movement
We context equity - equality social vulnerability	We policy bio-POLITICS accountability of government(s)

See also:
body & soul - Book: Philosophy of care: New approaches to vulnerability, otherness therapy

Book for review: ii "Philosophy of Care - New Approaches to Vulnerability, Otherness and Therapy"

Book for review: ii "Philosophy of Care - New Approaches to Vulnerability, Otherness and Therapy"

What I like here is being drawn (rescued then!) from the torrent that is the near reaches of the 

    bit, byte ... data, information, knowledge, wisdom

continuum, to its latter realm. The forever incomplete project of wisdom in 'care':

"Care, which is prior to all curing, identifies a fundamental availableness that has not yet been appropriated in the expert and technical discourses of care specialists." p.9.

This goes back to Pierron's 1st chapter focus upon 'Care: A New Arrival in the History of Philosophy'?

J. Braga & M. Santiago de Carvalho (Eds.), Philosophy of care: New approaches to vulnerability, otherness therapy. Springer.

A real gift for me (Hodges' model) is:

"Narration .. In opposition to the mathematization of the world, which reduces human problems to theoretical questions and to a universalized and rational formulation of moral dilemmas, the philosophies of care present a conflict of interpretations which deconstructs official and stereotyped narratives. Amy (or the voice of care) does not conceive a dilemma as a mathematical problem but rather as a narration of human relations, whose effects extends over time. (Gilligan 2008: 53)." p.13.

In addition to Tronto "Care is <<a species of activity that includes everything we do to maintain, contain, and repair our 'world' so that we can live in it as well as possible. That world includes our bodies, ourselves, and our environment>> (Tronto 2009: 143)." p.15. (see i) - I must add Gilligan to the list. 

In this weekend's FT, there's an item about the sorry state of the UK's statistical infrastructure (a post will follow, and mention of another book). I remember* Derek Hoy (RIP) doing a presentation about using data, and nursing informatics to make nursing visible. I wonder how he would make sense of the contrast between nursing whilst in COVID and post?

"Gilligan puts forward a distinction between a feminine ethics of care, which makes use of the idea of the natural solicitude of women by associating self-sacrifice and concern for others, and a feminist ethic of care, thought of as a critical approach that brings to light the mechanisms which favour the "invisibilisation" of care. The latter makes it possible to analyse the ways in which we lose the capacity to care for the other when relations of mutual caring are damaged." p.14. 

As usual below I've mapped some concepts to the domains of Hodges' model. 

Many thanks again to Springer for my copy.

Please note, also - as usual I am trapped in chapter 1! :-)

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"Amy - voice of care" relational situated	data, information, informatics visibility statistical infrastructure
context equity - equality social justice	context feminism data - reporting accountability of government(s)

See also:
body & soul - Book: Philosophy of care: New approaches to vulnerability, otherness therapy

*https://hodges-model.blogspot.com/2010/08/drupal-musings-12-semantic-web-icnp.html

Psycho-Politics - c/o Peter Sedgwick

One domain counts, but how does it care?

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Sedgwick P (1982). Psychopolitics. London: Pluto Press. 

See also: Cresswell, M. and Spandler, H. (2009) Psychopolitics: Peter Sedgwick’s legacy for mental health movements Social Theory and Health 7(2) 129-47. 
https://clok.uclan.ac.uk/2485/2/2485_Spandler.pdf

https://www.jstor.org/stable/40547630

Ack. Library Lancaster University.

Prev. 'bridge' , 'psycho-political'

One domain counts (when it chooses), but how does it care?

IO Magazine #41 Being = Space x Action

"The Parmenides poem in fact opens a rather impressively large range of philosophical issues which remain unresolved to this day: the questions of the unity of knowledge, the unity of being, the unity of knowledge and being, the nature of proof, the nature of thought itself, the nature of justice, the relations between thought, proof, knowledge and justice, the possibility of rational cosmology and the relationships between logic and cosmology, the existence and nature of abstract entities, the privileged status of philosophical knowledge - all these questions became explicitly formulatable questions immediately following the production of Parmenides poem, none of them are definitely resolved today, and the future of science, culture and the human spirit all depend to a far from trivial degree on how these questions come to be reflected upon." pp.3-4.

IO Magazine. Reveal Digital, 01-01-1988
Contributed by: Charles Stein; Don Byrd; A.S. Yessenin-Volpin; Christer Hennix; Henry Flynt; Henry Flynt; George Quasha; Charles Stein; Christer Hennix; Luitzen Egbertus Jan Brouwer; L.E.J. Brouwer; L.E.J. Brouwer; Charles Stein. Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/community.28038534

The poem: http://philoctetes.free.fr/parmenidesunicode.htm

Occupational therapist Joël inspires elderly to get in motion ...

Or, "Excuse me. How many movements are there in that watch?"*

"Joël Kruisselbrink’s creativity in designing exercises and games inspires elderly people to keep moving and live life to the fullest.

Nursing home residents are often understimulated and have little motivation to exercise. As an exercise instructor, Joël Kruisselbrink knows better than anyone how important exercise is for the elderly. His passion for creating exercises and games enables older people to continue enjoying life while keeping them moving."

Brightvibes: Exercise is life: Joel’s exercises and games inspire older people to keep moving

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What do you think the impact is upon the resident's mental health and emotional well-being? Psycho-
-Social?	Standards & Quality of Care Policy

*Hodges' model: A tool to watch the complications of Care

My source: https://x.com/Rainmaker1973/status/1802268229361967404

Hodges' model: A tool to watch the complications of Care

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How many complications here?
... here?	"Despite its achievement, Vacheron Constantin has not filed a patent, on the Chinese perpetual calendar, saying it doesn't want to reveal details." p.S9. ... and here too?

Foulkes, N. Inside Vacheron's exclusive cabinet of complications, Watches & Jewellery, Financial Times, 9 April 2024, p.4.

Image and text: https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/introducing-vacheron-constantin-berkley-grand-complication

The Complications, 1 Through 63

"There's likely some part of you that's curious about each of the 63 functions that have totaled a record-breaking level of complication. I'll list the functions below, broken down by type, to simplify things.

Time measurement (9 Total): 1. Regulator-type hours, minutes, and seconds for mean solar time 2. Retrograde second for mean solar time 3. Day and night indication for reference city 4. Visible spherical armillary tourbillon regulator with spherical balance spring 5. Armillary sphere tourbillon 6. World time indication for 24 cities 7. Second time zone hours and minutes (on 12 hours display) 8. Second time zone day and night indication 9. System to display the second time zone for the Northern or Southern hemispheres

Gregorian Perpetual Calendar (7 Total): 10. Gregorian perpetual calendar 11. Gregorian days of the week 12. Gregorian months 13. Gregorian retrograde date 14. Leap-year indication and four-year cycle 15. Number of the day of the week (ISO 8601 calendar) 16. Indication for the number of the week within the year (ISO 8601 calendar).

Chinese Perpetual Calendar (11 Total): 17. Chinese perpetual calendar 18. Chinese number of the day. 19. Chinese name of the month 20. Chinese date indication 21. Chinese zodiac signs 22. 5 elements and 10 celestial stems 23. 6 energies and 12 earthly branches 24. Chinese year state (common or embolismic) 25. Month state (small or large) 26. Indication for the Golden number within the 19-year Metonic cycle 27. Indication for the date of the Chinese New Year in the Gregorian calendar.
Chinese Agricultural Perpetual Calendar (2 Total): 28. Chinese agricultural perpetual calendar. 29. Indications of seasons, equinoxes, and solstices with solar hand.

Astronomic Calendar (9 Total): 30. Sky chart (calibrated for Shanghai) 31. Sidereal hours 32. Sidereal minutes 33. Sunrise time (calibrated for Shanghai) 34. Sunset time (calibrated for Shanghai) 35. Equation of time 36. Length of the day (calibrated for Shanghai) 37. Length of the night (calibrated for Shanghai) 38. Phases and age of the moon, one correction every 1027 years.

Split-seconds Chronograph (4 Total): 39. Fifths of a second chronograph (1 column wheel) 40. Fifths of a second split-second chronograph (1 column wheel) 41. 12-hour counter (1 column wheel) 42. 60-minute counter.

Alarm (7 Total): 43. Progressive alarm with single gong and hammer striking 44. Alarm strike/silence indicator 45. Choice of normal alarm or carillon striking alarm indicator 46. Alarm mechanism coupled to the carillon striking mechanism 47. Alarm striking with choice of grande or petite sonnerie 48. Alarm power-reserve indication 49. System to disengage the alarm barrel when fully wound.

Westminster Carillon (8 Total): 50. Carillon Westminster chiming with 5 gongs and 5 hammers 51. Grande sonnerie passing strike 52. Petite sonnerie passing strike 53. Minute repeating 54. Night silence feature (between 22.00 and 08.00 hours – hours chosen by the owner) 55. System to disengage the striking barrel when fully wound 56. Indication for grande or petite sonnerie modes 57. Indication for silence / striking / night modes.

Additional features (6) 58. Power-reserve indication for the going train 59. Power-reserve indication for the striking train 60. Winding crown position indicator 61. Winding system for the double barrels 62. Hand-setting system with two positions and two directions 63. Concealed flush-fit winding crown for the alarm mechanism."

Also: Naas, R. New and extremely complicated. Watches. The New York Times International Edition, April 9, 2024, p.S9

Craftsmanship. "It took a watchmaker a year to assemble the Complication's 2,877 parts, including 31 hands, nine discs and 245 jewels." p.S9. Plus, quote regards the question of a patent.

Vacheron Constantin

(Just to be clear - this post, as with all others is not paid/sponsored.)

Book for review: i "Philosophy of Care - New Approaches to Vulnerability, Otherness and Therapy"

Among the questions that research might answer regards Hodges' model I have in mind:

• At what age can Hodges' model be introduced in the general curriculum?
• Is there consistency in how people view/interpret and apply Hodges' model?
• How simple is it (or complex)?
• Is it a meta-model?
• How can Hodges' model relate to the spiritual?

My B.A.(Joint Hons) is in Philosophy and Computer Science, so the 'Philosophy of Nursing' is a preoccupation. In January 2022 I discovered:

J. Braga & M. Santiago de Carvalho (Eds.), Philosophy of care: New approaches to vulnerability, otherness therapy. Springer.

I requested a copy but ever distracted did not register any further action beyond acknowledgement and being forwarded. Discovering I'd missed this, I picked it up again. I must admit two years ago I was expecting a book with 'care' in the nursing, medicine, health context. Revisiting the 'blurb' I saw that this is not the full picture. Last year and this however drawn to conferences that combine the environment and religion this book really did fit the bill. Requesting a 'review copy' so late in the publishing cycle presents a challenge. 

Hodges' model provides a long-tail, surely a defining property of a lifelong learning resource? This plus a history of cataract surgery brought a print copy and many thanks to Daniela Rohrmann and team. I've now reached Part V, chapter 19 and 'medical care'.

The book's physical quality (printed hardcopy) is up to Springer's usual high quality standard. The fact that much of the contents have, I believe, been translated appears to show at times, in one chapter especially, with missing, or additional words. Perhaps this also reflects proof reading, an important part of production I would have thought (and still best not left to AI)? The font and print size is very readable and the format and design - architecture - of headings and layout are inviting and engage the reader. There are Any problems with grammar, flow were readily overcome. 

In meeting this text I oscillated in expectation - philosopher of care, as in the clinical context; and then the spiritual, pastoral. Which is it? The emphasis is on the latter with the final part focussed more on medicine. The book has extended my appreciation of 'care' in the wider sense, it is rewarding and well-worth reading.

"Finally, the fifth part – Care and Therapy – examines issues relevant to medical

care. This volume would be remiss if it did not take therapeutic care into account.

Practical and theoretical knowledge mutually influence each other. This highly specialized

domain imparts a significant amount of the status that care is given in our

daily lives. Thus, in this last part, the previous themes of otherness and ipseity converge

systematically. Through the theoretical emphasis that is placed on the issue of

suffering – whether it concerns physical illnesses or those of the psychological and

psychiatric realm – the authors of these chapters show us the urgency of thinking

about therapeutic care practices in the light of a theory of intersubjectivity, where

the disease itself and its cure are understood within the communication processes

and not only as exclusively technical-scientific processes." p.vii. (Introduction).

Don't worry I'm not going through each chapter, but Chapter 1 is a fascinating read, the title 'Care: A New Arrival in the History of Philosophy?' https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-75478-5_1 presented an immediate challenge. For me, love, compassion, philosophy - as the love of wisdom, knowledge, what it is be, think, exist, the human condition and more all imply 'care' including care of thought and argument. I'm probably begging the question and I realise the Peirron's purpose is more specific, nuanced. I'm reassured though as care is defined by three criteria:

"(a) care is contextual and anti-essentialist... The characterization of care requires a great deal of attention to the precise details of each situation (Tronto, 2012: 35)."

"(b) care is relational and accepts that human beings , other beings, and the environment are interdependent  (Tronto, 2012: 32)."

"(c) In human societies which would like to assume the equal value of all human life, care needs to be democratic and inclusive  (Tronto, 2012: 36)." p.6.

I must read Tronto - who work has elevated vulnerability as flagship concept of her politics of care (Tronto, 2009) (p.8); 'dialectical' too (p.10). The book is full of many leads, the writing scholarly and authoritative.

With some studies in education and philosophy the pragmatic school of thought quickly surfaces. I see Hodges' model as a pragmatic solution. In addition to the 'pragmatics of care', Peirron opens the door even further in respect of 'care':

"Giving through care involves much more than what is described in the interactional framework of exchanges characteristic of homo economicus (economical animal) paradigm. Giving is not exchanging because care involves so much more than just the provision of a service. Care, as understood as a politically relevant anthropological position, is thus very different from a Hobbes-inspired anthropology which supposes a social epistemology based on a an atomistic approach to individuals. It provides a fundamental interpretation of our social intelligence by thinking it, starting from a relational anthropology within which the concept of vulnerability plays, as we will see, a strategic role. A pathetics of care rethinks the balance between reason and feeling, argument and emotion in the spirit of the tradition of Scottish philosophy, in order to allow a "different voice" to be heard in the analysis, the description, and the support of the human world." p.7. 

The pathetic view of care requires a language, methods, aesthetics that can manage 'the singularity of an enduring life history' (p.10). This equates for me with the health career in Hodges' model.

As usual below I've mapped some concepts to the domains of Hodges' model. I will add to this post too.

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contextual anti-essentialist relational situated	context human being, other being  and environment - interdependent
context interdependence care in human societies  equality within human societies	context situated human societies are democratic and inclusive

See also:
body & soul - Book: Philosophy of care: New approaches to vulnerability, otherness therapy

Scaling-up Health Arts Programmes: Effectiveness Research (Sold Out!)

This event is located in London, it is sold-out and not online. Coming across the symposium on twitter and learning that the research has run its course prompted me to think about the life-cycle of projects, research (big and small); ever important, of course, in the dissemination of research results, outcomes and benefits.

More details are provided on the 'Sold Out' event link and in the image below:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/collaborating-to-scale-implement-established-arts-and-health-programmes-tickets-874119594237

 

Why bother to post this? We can't be all-knowing in terms of research / project calls. This means I've noticed how we often learn of initiatives and opportunities at their close. News of citations for Hodges' model arrive is invariably after-the-fact, the fact being the 'study' as a whole. So is the dissemination more haphazard than it needs to be? A silly question, but have all the research councils, academia in general looked at research 'alerts'. What about the Government? Especially in response to citizen science, patient engagement, public involvement? Is this an application begging for a digital solution? Perhaps there is one (several) out there already? In human resources there is employee on-boarding, orientation and there's off-boarding, or there's supposed to be the leaver's questionnaire and exit interview. Beyond the final research report what is the situation: marks out of 10?

This looks a great initiative, especially the participation, collaboration and creativity generated. Below I've related some relevant concepts within Hodges' model: embedded within the spiritual.

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ipseity, identity Health: parity of esteem - mind::body my lived experience, efficacy ideas, perspective, interpretation	body - movement, physio.. objects, media, physical reality time, place, space information sharing
art forms: fine, dance, drama, music ... collective - collaborative creativity shared motivation, public awareness participant identification (biases?)	policy (national - regional, local) research funding physical accessibility - transport funding distribution

My source:
https://x.com/TheNCCH/status/1798020326007472407

I also realise the access limitations presented here on a blog commenced in 2006.

HC@AIxIA: AI & Health Seminar Series 2024 - June 17

Dear Madam/Sir,

This is to officially announce the FIFTH seminar of the "AI & Health" series as hosted by HC@AIxIA, i.e., the "Artificial Intelligence for Healthcare" working group of the Italian Association for Artificial Intelligence. Save the date: 17 JUNE 2024.

We hope you will attend and participate in the discussion on the relevant topics that will be presented and by our speakers. 

Feel free to share this with those potentially interested.

Please find some details below, and a poster attached. All directions for participating are available at https://aixia.it/en/gruppi/hc/.

== Are you interested in Joining the group? ==
Please head to https://aixia.it/en/gruppi/hc/ fo find out how. Do not hesitate to contact us at 
hc-aixia AT googlegroups.com for any information or clarification.


Thank you for your interest in the AI & Health seminar series and the HC AT AIxIA working group, and see you soon!

Sincerely,
Francesco Calimeri, Mauro Dragoni, Fabio Stella
(coordinators of the HC AT AIxIA working group)


== June 2024 seminar ==

Link to participate: https://unimib.webex.com/unimib/j.php?MTID=m28ccb1f152d586e7d920c9b856da3d97

2024 June 17 - 4:30PM CET
Luca Neri

Senior Director, GMO Data Science Lead - Clinical Advanced Analytics – AP, LATAM, EMEA region, Fresenius Medical Care Italia S.p.A.

Title:  AI in medicine: from the conceptualization to its clinical application. Opportunities & Challenges

Abstract: The path from brilliant ideas to their concrete embodiment into a working application it’s a fascinating (and sometimes exhausting) journey of opportunities and challenges. We will provide an overview of why medicine needs AI. We will further explore the challenges we encounter throughout the development cycle and how we have tried to overcome them. From demand analysis, to model development, through the hurdles of current global regulatory landscape, market access and health-technology assessment, we will discover that a model in medicine is not just a model. It means encoding medical knowledge in a way that is legally usable (and desirable) by doctors, nurses and patients in a highly regulated sector.

Short Bio: Dr Neri earned his MD and PhD degree in Occupational & Environmental Medicine at the School of Medicine of the University of Milan. He joined the Saint Louis University Center for Outcomes Research (SLUCOR - St. Louis, MO, USA) as an epidemiologist and outcomes research scientist in 2005 and served as Adjunct Instructor of Health Management and Policy at the same institution until 2013. In January 2010 he also joined the Department of Clinical Science and Community Health of the University of Milan, his hometown. His research interests spanned across multiple therapeutic areas. He collaborated with academic and commercial partners in developing new research, devising methods for answering investigative questions and solving research design problems. He authored over 90 original papers in international, peer reviewed scientific journals in the field of outcomes research and epidemiology. He joined Fresenius as a data scientist in 2016 and he now leads the Data Science Division in the Clinical Advanced Analytic team for the Global Medical Office for the EMEA, LATAM, APAC regions. The Data Science team develops AI-tools assisting healthcare professionals undertaking complex decisions in their day-to-day work activity.

body & soul - Book: Philosophy of care: New approaches to vulnerability, otherness therapy

Near the end now of Braga & Carvalho's (2021) Philosophy of care on page 318 I came across:

"When we come up against the demon of acedia, then with tears let us divide the soul and have one part offer consolation and other receive consolation. (Pr. 27)."

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soul	body

- and a footnote (42):

"The generally accepted treatment for depression, with or without pharmaceutical intervention, is gentleness. Eat well, avoid stress, do not feel guilty; be kind to yourself, seek quiet but real amusement, rest a lot. But such a regime would find little sympathy with the spiritual directors of those afflicted with accidie. The classic cure for accidie is penance, a strict 'rule' of life, self-discipline and hard work" (Maitland, 2008: 113).

Maitland, Sara. 2008. A Book of Silence. London: Granta.

Interesting, the similarity between afflicted and affected?

A lot more to follow ...

Carvalho, C.A.S. Acedia and Its Care. In J. Braga & M. Santiago de Carvalho (Eds.), Philosophy of care: New approaches to vulnerability, otherness therapy. Springer. pp.297-323.

Abbrev. (Pr. 27) Evagrius of Pontus. 1971. Praktikos. ...

With thanks to Springer for hard copy - helps greatly. 👀

'Earthrise' c/o Bill Anders RIP

Earthrise in 4K

"In December of 1968, the crew of Apollo 8 became the first people to leave our home planet and travel to another body in space. But as crew members Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders all later recalled, the most important thing they discovered was Earth." 

See also:

Earthrise: The Story of the Photo that Changed the World | Short Film Showcase

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsShNeDvccc

Thank you Bill and all the Apollo team and subsequent space faring families across the Home planet.

P.S. I'll leave it to you to relate the significance of Apollo 8's 'Earthrise' to Hodges' model.

"Is climate change affecting our mental health?" BBC & OU

"Heat waves and extreme weather aren't just affecting our physical lives, there's growing evidence they're impacting our mental health too."

Produced and directed by Lily Freeston, 29 May 2024

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'New' citation of Hodges' model - Kennedy (2019)

This morning an alert from ResearchGate brought news of a further not so new citation of Hodges' model:

Kennedy, Harry G. (2019). National Forensic Mental Health Service (NFMHS) Model of Care. 10.13140/RG.2.2.30103.59041.

I've extending thanks to Prof. Kennedy, and have added the details to the blog's bibliography (in the sidebar). It is not as if Hodges' model played a key role in service design (care architecture?), but it is nonetheless marvellous to achieve this visibility.

This does make me wonder if there are others?

Any further news welcome.

Implementing the primary health care approach: A primer

Overview

This Primer is about the 'how' of primary health care (PHC) and brings together best practices and knowledge that countries have generated through 'natural experiments' in strengthening PHC with the best available research evidence. Despite the progress made towards PHC globally, the concept is still often misunderstood, even within the public health community. The Primer offers a contemporary understanding of PHC and more conceptual clarity for strengthening PHC-oriented health systems. It does so by consolidating both scientific evidence and an extensive sample of practical experiences across countries for the needed evidence to address practical implementation issues. 

The Primer is organized in three parts. Part I explains the PHC approach, its history, core concepts and rationale, and draws out lessons for transformation. Part II addresses operational and strategic levers that make PHC work. It covers governance, financing and human resources for health, medicines, health technology, infrastructure and digital health, and their role in implementing change. Part III concludes with a cross-cutting view of the impacts of PHC on the health system, efficiency, quality of care, equity, access, financial protection and health systems resilience, including in the face of climate change. 

Rajan D, Rouleau K, Winkelmann J, Kringos D, Jakab M, Khalid F, editors. Implementing the Primary Health Care approach: a primer. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2024 (Global report on primary health care). Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO. 
https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240090583

Black Mental Health Manifesto

"Concrete action is needed to improve mental healthcare for black communities otherwise generations will keep being “held back from achieving their full potential”, a new coalition has warned.

The group said it is calling for “positive change” to alter a system within which it said black people are being failed when they at their most vulnerable.

The coalition – which includes the Black Minds Matter charity, the Centre for Mental Health and Mind as well as smaller grass-roots organisations – has launched what it called the Black Mental Health Manifesto."

        continued ...

Individual

|

      INTERPERSONAL    :     SCIENCES               

HUMANISTIC  --------------------------------------  MECHANISTIC      

 SOCIOLOGY  :    POLITICAL 

|

Group

Mental Health / Illness - Parity of Esteem Holistic: Assessment, Planning, Intervention, Evaluation - Competency? Diagnosis of Psychoses	Physical health change/revision - WHEN? Objectivity of assessment / Cultural literacy
Black communities and Families Culture, History Radical future? Stigma, Stereotype Social determinants	Racism. Economic, Political determinants Poverty, Housing insecurity Statistics - Admissions / Recourse to MHA Incarceration, Injustice Mental Health Law - Mental Health Act CHANGE/REVISION - when? Coalition

Comparison and contrasting the Meikirch Model and Hodges' model

Learning of another conceptual framework, which helpfully is also described as a model, there is a website, publications and illustrations (well executed PNGs). Enter, the Meikirch Model:

Bircher J. und Hahn E. G.
Will the Meikirch Model, a New Framework for Health, Induce a Paradigm Shift in Healthcare?
Cureus 9(3): e1081. DOI 10.7759/cureus.1081

The title of the paper is impressive, and on reflection worthy because we really do need a paradigm shift in healthcare. 

How to achieve universal health coverage and do so sustainably? In turn, how to realise the Sustainable Development Goals, while having regards the dependencies, determinants of health? For Hodges' model this is factored in by Brian (Hodges') recognising the political in situations including health. (So, I would argue that the required paradigm shift extends much further, but more on that to follow.)

Below I will review some of the main arguments, facets, and principles of the Meikirch Model, drawing from their website: https://meikirch-modell.ch

 
Meikirch Model: Overview

The Meikirch begins with 'demands of life':

"Each living creature has to fulfill the demands life puts on him or her. In man these demands include biological, psychosocial and environmental shares."

From the outset the INDIVIDUAL being - as a living creature (hence animals, flora too?) is highlighted - as per the individual - self, in Hodges' model. Maslow's hierarchy is presented too in stressing the need for shelter to counter the demands of the environment.

I like the way the individual draws upon 'biological given' and 'personally acquired' "potentials". In Hodges' model the individual's interpersonal development, their intellectual abilities, motivation, attitude, personality and more all contribute to a person's self-actualisation.

Demands of life provides the basis for the Individual in the Meikirch model, as per the figure. In the notes the responsibility of the individual in the extent to which they achieve their potential appears to be emphasized. Responsibility extends to:

• how he or she cultivates the relationship to other human beings.
• how she or he participates with the life of the society.
• how he or she deals with the natural environment.

There is acknowledgement of how the biologically given potential can be reduced, and so:

"may compensate their defects to a large part by further developing their personally acquired potential. "

The Meikirch model is "A new concept of health based on science".

For the Individual, an example is given of type 1 diabetes were the person is able to become an proficient in management of their condition, possibly even an expert - and most likely the expert barring complications (infection ...).

I've blogged (I think!)* and Twi/Xed about the old joke (of course, it is not) of the N.H.S. being a misnomer. It really stands for the "National Ill-Health Service". Since drafting this in February, I'm sure I've heard this again on the radio, amid the ongoing UK election process. The website notes how generally:

"The health care system is 'sick'

This sickness results from a concept of health that is blind itself."

It is also not just just the need for change, as stressed by Meikirch; but how to make the transition to health education, promotion and prevention? Meikirch is a marvellous addition to the argument.

Moving further another common component with Hodges' model is the SOCIETY and social determinants in the Meikirch model, Sociology in Hodges' model. As Profs Bircher and Hahn note, relationships are key:

"The social context of a person encompasses the family, friends, acquaintances, schools, employers, including political institutions. Good lively personal relationships in family and social settings promote health. In contrast, burdensome relationships may compromise health. Whoever damages human relationships, exacerbates the development of the personally acquired potential of affected persons including his own."

The role of the law in the social framework is acknowledged, and how anxiety, greed and abuse can obviously impact on an individual's health. This extends from within the family, community, to the workplace; relationships between employees and managers for example.

Helpfully, society is also responsible for the health of (its) individuals. But this also relies upon mutuality with individuals:

"each individual must also contribute his or her part for a proper functioning of the society."

A reference that links the collaborative nature of society with public health:

Johannes Bircher, Shyama Kuruvilla, Defining health by addressing individual, social, and environmental determinants: New opportunities for health care and public health. Journal of Public Health Policy (2014) 35,363-368. (with link).

The ENVIRONMENT makes up the outer-most ring in the diagram. The Meikirch author's connection with Switzerland is evident in the protective examples of avalanche barriers and a natural deficiency of iodine and fluorine. 

"iodization of cooking and table salt and fluoridation of tooth pastes to prevent thyroid diseases and dental caries. Construction of avalanche barriers and of houses resistant to earthquakes also protects health."

Sadly we have seen backward steps in dental services provision in the UK; and recent earthquakes have demonstrated the tragic consequences of lapse building regulation when buildings 'pancake' in a progressive collapse. 

I contacted the authors https://meikirch-modell.ch/en/authors/ but no response has been received.

I will reflect further - adding a table with concepts related to Hodges' model and discuss the table at: https://meikirch-modell.ch/en/model/

Theories Concerning Health and Disease

Type of thinking

Epistemology

Means for comprehension

Prescientific

Personal experience

Intuition

Scientific: Meikirch-Model

Scientific argumentation

Rational mind

*Salutogenic Perspectives and Supertankers - Public Health