spirit and healing in africa - University of the Free State

physical affliction, and it points towards ‘health’ as a multi-dimensional and holistic concept.
The somewhat one-sided focus on somatic aspects and diseases, an approach that has a long
history in Western medicine going back to classical antiquity, is left behind and now the
psychological, social and spiritual elements of health are acknowledged as well. This broadening
of the concept of health corresponds well with most non-Western medical traditions based on
their holistic concept of health.
Notwithstanding this important merit of emphasizing various dimensions of health, the WHO
definition still remains a modern Western product that was formulated in the aftermath of World
War II: peace and health were now seen as inseparable, and “deeply held assumptions about
progress and perfectibility, and the role that science can and should play in the direction of
human affairs” (Brady et.al. 1997:272) gave rise to the WHO definition of health. This
perspective discloses mainly Western ideas concerning health as the inevitable result of human
progress overcoming economic and social difficulties. Consequently, it turns health as a
desirable and blissful circumstance into health as a fundamental human right. The often raised
question is whether the WHO definition can function as an effective working concept in studies
of health and disease. The main complication has to do with the fact that a state of complete
physical, mental and social well-being refers much more to happiness than to health. Equating
health with happiness has at least two main consequences for the concept of health as a universal
right: any disturbance to happiness (which is strictly subjective) may be viewed as a health
problem which could lead to an unlimited demand for health services; and any effort to
guarantee happiness for every individual will be difficult to align with striving for justice and
equity in health (care). The WHO definition of health has to be appreciated for the emphasis on
the various coherent dimensions of health, although this approach remains utopian.
1.1.2 Two basic approaches to health
Besides the well-known, yet utopian and, therefore, inapplicable definition of the WHO there are
two basic approaches that influence the existing understandings of health, illness and healing.
These two approaches of how health is conceived tend to differ enormously, and often cause
trouble for those who would like to embrace both health models (cf. Engel 1977:132).
The biomedical model
The biomedical approach to health is the most dominant perspective within the health discourse,
and it offers a very familiar health theory and knowledge framework for many people. The
biomedical model is represented by the image of a hospital or clinic, well-educated medical
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