The notion of holism participates in the history of thought. While scientific advances of last centuries garnered wide support for their underlying materialistic and reductionist approach, the ancient assumption that the whole is more, or different, than the sum of its parts is still meaningful. Considerations on holism in health care take into account importance of cultural backgrounds; lifestyles and societal circumstances; complexity of individuals’ attitudes and roles; current interpretations of the notion; and public health policies. Chiropractic and its principles that associate several domains of reflexion have characteristics of holism in the definition of the person and as a method of health care. This is now interpreted as the biopsychosocial model.
The widely acclaimed holistic approach may be an endeavor, essential although elusive, to maintain individuals as full-fledged persons in contemporary societies. Eventually, health and its impairments are the rapport of human beings to their own lives, so that holism rests with each individual in a creative endeavor.
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