Health care

Health care or healthcare is the preservation of mental and physical health by preventing or treating illnesses through services offered by the health profession and its staff. Health care includes all reasonable and necessary medical aid, medical examinations, medical treatments, medical diagnoses, medical evaluations and medical services. The right to health care is considered one of human rights with international human rights law as well as social security.

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Siberian Medical Train "Therapist Matvei Mudrov" in Russia

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Universal Healthcare by Country

Primary care

A primary care doctor (PCD) or primary care physician (PCP) is a doctor who provides general medical care. These doctors can answer health concerns and medical conditions a patient may have. They also can prescribe medicine for their patients, based on information gathered.

Culture of health

In 1968, Victor Skumin proposed the term ″Culture of Health″, which has become widespread. The main task of a Culture of Health is to implement innovative health programs that support a holistic approach to physical, mental and spiritual health. Holism is the idea that natural systems (physical, biological, chemical, social, economic, mental, linguistic, etc.) and their properties, should be viewed as wholes, not as collections of parts.

According to Skumin, the culture of health is not only the mechanical connection of the two concepts—the concept of ″culture″ and the concept of ″health″. This is their synthesis, which forms a new quality, a new content. Skumin examines the culture of health as the specific science, that develops the theoretical and practical tasks of harmonious development of the spiritual, mental, and physical human force, forming of optimum environment, which provides a higher level of creativity of life. Thus, Skumin argues that the culture of health is a separate science, that creates new content. The main challenge of culture of health is the development of spiritual, mental and physical capabilities of man.

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Healthcare Building

In 1994, Skumin was elected to the post of the President-founder of the World Organisation of Culture of Health (WOCH) — International social movement "To Health via Culture".

Secondary and Tertiary Care

Secondary care, often referred to as hospital and specialist care, is health care services provided by medical specialists and other health professionals who generally do not have a first contact with patients, for example, cardiologists, urologists and dermatologists. A referral from a primary care provider is generally required to access secondary care.

Tertiary care is specialized consultative health care, usually for inpatients and on referral from a primary or secondary health professional, in a facility that has personnel and facilities for advanced medical investigation and treatment, such as a tertiary referral hospital.

Health Care Systems

Health care systems are groups of health care providers and institutions that deliver health care services to communities. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines health systems as consisting of all organizations, people and actions whose primary intent is to promote, restore or maintain health.

Health care systems can vary greatly from country to country, and in some countries, health care is entirely provided by the government, while in others, it is provided by a mixture of public and private institutions.

Right to Health Care

The right to health care is considered a human right, as established by international human rights law. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights both identify health care as a right of all individuals. Many countries have incorporated the right to health or the right to medical care into their constitutions.

Social Security and Health Care

Social security plays a key role in ensuring access to health care for many individuals. In many countries, social security systems provide for health care coverage, either directly through state-run health care systems, or indirectly, by providing health insurance or subsidies for private health care.

See Also

• Health system
• Healthcare reform
• Public health
• Health equity

Related pages

• Universal health care
• Doctor-patient relationship

Health care Resources
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