FAMILY AS A UNIT OF CARE

DEFINITION and IMPORTANCE of FAMILY

• It is the basic social unit in the society. It is

also the most enduring context of human
relatedness.
• Any intervention in individual’s life creates an
impact towards his family.
• Societal problems are often attributed to the
failure of family life, hence the family is not
only a potential source of problem but also a
major resource in health care.
 FAMILY HEALTH CARE

• Article II Sec. 12. The State recognizes the

sanctity of family life and shall protect and
strengthen the family as a basic autonomous
social institution.
• Article XV Sec.1. The State recognizes the
Filipino family as the foundation of the
nation. Accordingly, it shall strengthen its
solidarity and actively promote its
development.
 FAMILY HEALTH CARE

• Article XIII. Sec.2.The State shall adopt an

integrated and comprehensive approach to
health development which shall endeavor to
make essential goods, health and other social
services available to all the people at
affordable cost.
• Article II Sec. 15. The State shall protect and
promote the right to health of the people
and instill health consciousness among them.
 FAMILY
• it is a group of people related by blood, marriages
or adoption, who live together in one household (
United Nations)
• it is a small social system made up of individuals
related to each other by reason of strong reciprocal
affections and loyalties and comprising a
permanent household of household (or cluster of
households) that persist over years and decades
(Terkelson 1980)
• refers to a group of people who share a common
dwelling.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF A FILIPINO FAMILY;
• closely knit
• bilaterally extended
• strong family orientation
• authority based on age
• externally patriarchal, internally matriarchal
• place high premium on education
• predominantly Catholic
• Child- centered
• 5 is usually the average number of children
• Often exposed to the different environmental stresses such
as; economic and political difficulties,
urbanization/modernization and health problems.
 THE STRENGTHS OF FILIPINO FAMILY:
A. The ability to provide for the family’s
physical, emotional, spiritual and cultural
needs.
B. Child rearing practices and discipline
C. Communication
D. Support, Security and Encouragement
E. Growth- Producing Relationships
 THE STRENGHTS OF FILIPINO FAMILY:
F. Responsible Community Relationships
G. Self- help and Accepting Help
H. Flexibility of family functions and roles
I. Crisis as a Means of Growth
J. Family unity, Loyalty and Intra- family
cooperation
 FAMILY AS A SPECIAL UNIT
• Family membership is a life long
involvement
• Shared Attributes
• Sense of belonging
• Societal Expectations
• Built –in problems in the family
includes generation gap between the
children and parents, dependence,
emotional involvement, sibling rivalry.
 FAMILY AS A SPECIAL UNIT
• 6. Family endure despite conflicts and built
in problems such as various degrees of
authority and individual sense of
responsibility and belonging that
continuously draw the family together.
 FAMILY AS A UNIT OF CARE
1. Family is the social contact for health
care
2. Patient’s problem is a family problem
3. Family is the greatest ally in treatment
4. Patients are often accompanied by
family member during consultation or
interview.
 WHAT IS FAMILY CARE?
1. It is taking care of each members in
the family as individuals
2. It is dealing with the family as object
of management
3. It is influencing family members to
change factors affecting individual’s
health.
 WHAT FAMILY PHYSICIANS NEED TO KNOW
ABOUT FAMILIES?

1. Understanding family structure and

functions
2. Awareness of how family communicate
3. Skills in observing of how families
operate
4. Ability to relate the family /individual
5. Reinforce central function in the family
CLASSIFICATION OF FAMILY ACCORDING TO
STRUCTURE
• NUCLEAR FAMILY
• EXTENDED FAMILY
• COMMUNAL OR CORPORATE FAMILY
• SINGLE – PARENT FAMILY
• BLENDED FAMILY
IMPORTANT WAYS in which the FAMILY PLAYS a
ROLE in the HEALTH of its MEMBERS:

1. Health promotion and maintenance

as well as illness prevention
2. Coping with stressful life events
3. Family based health and illness
appraisal
4. Family interaction and level of
function in response to illness
IMPORTANT WAYS in which the FAMILY PLAYS a
ROLE in the HEALTH of its MEMBERS:
5. Help-seeking or deciding to seek medical
help
6. Family adaptation to illness including the
ways the family copes with illness, cares
for ill members, and assisting in seeing
that there is appropriate adherence to the
prescribed medical treatment
 STAGES OF MARRIAGE
Stages Emotions Stage Critical Tasks
1. Honeymoon Commitment -differentiation from family of
Stage (0-2 yrs) to the origin
marriage - making room for spouse with
family and friends
-adjusting career demands
2. Early maturing of -keeping romance in the
marriage stage relationship marriage
(2-10 yrs) balancing separateness and
togetherness
-renewing marriage
commitment
 STAGES OF MARRIAGE

3. Middle post career -adjusting to midlife

marriage planning changes
stage (10-25 - renegotiating relationship
yrs.) -renewing marriage
commitment
4. Long-term Review and -maintaining couple
stage Farewells functioning
-closing or adapting family
home
-coping with death of
spouse
 FIVE BASIC AREAS OF FAMILY FUNCTION

1. BIOLOGIC
2. ECONOMIC
3. EDUCATIONAL
4. PSYCHOLOGICAL
5. SOCIO- CULTURAL or SOCIALIZATION
 FAMILY RELATIONSHIP and INTERACTION

EFFECTS of HEALTH CARE

A. Ordinal Position
1. First born
2. Middle child
3. Youngest child
 FAMILY RELATIONSHIP and INTERACTION

B. Parent- Child Interaction/ Family

Relationship
1. Rejecting parent
2. Submissive parent
3. Dominating Parent
4. Absent Father or Mother
 FAMILY RELATIONSHIP and INTERACTION

C. Social Patterns of Behavior

1. Upper Class Family
2. Middle Class Family
3. Lower Class Family
 FAMILY RELATIONSHIP and INTERACTION
D. Family Set- Up
1. Democratic Set-up
2. Authoritarian Set –up
E. Filipino Values
1. High respect for Family Physician
2. Utang na Loob
3. Family ties
4. High Premium on education
5. Pakikisama
• THANK YOU