The importance of resilience to primary care practitioners: an interactive psycho-social model

Abstract

In this paper, it is argued that an understanding of the factors that make up resilience can enhance communication and concordance between practitioner and patient. A model is presented demonstrating that resilience is an interaction between factors in the internal domain, comprising psychological characteristics and resources, and the external domain, comprising the social environment surrounding the individual. As resilience manifests itself in different ways across the life-cycle, and according to individual circumstances, time is also an important part of the model presented in this paper. Understanding this model of resilience can lead to an insight that there are factors that can be influenced whereby the primary care practitioner can treat the patient, or refer them after a process of concordance through a deeper understanding of the factors that surround a patient’s current health status. Underlying the model is the view that resilience is linked to the assets model of health, seeking to promote and maintain health and prevent illness. Therefore, primary care practitioners, through a deeper understanding of the circumstances of the patient, and through understanding the factors that promote resilience, may be better able to take action in health promotion and maintenance.