Articulating the Social Model: why is it necessary?
Clarity about the nature of the social model and it’s theoretical and evidence base is necessary for four reasons. These relate to the underpinning influences and characteristics of the modernising health policy context. It is suggested that these include: • The policy emphasis on partnership and collaboration; • Developments in service user and citizen involvement; • The multi factorial nature of the new public health agenda; • Evidence for the effectiveness of holistic interventions aimed at the root causes of ill health and health inequality. The fluidity of these developments at this point in their evolution offers a number of opportunities for embedding both the theory and the practice of the social as an integral and valued element in the arsenal of resources and structures which are being put in place to address health challenges. There are also obstacles, which, if not addressed may result in the denigration of the values and methodologies that inform social practice, to the de
