JOURNAL OF HOLISTIC HEALTHCARE   Close

Issue 7.1

• Editorial
• A brief summary of holistic wellness literature
  Gord Miller and Leslie T Foster Faculty of Human and Social Development & Department of Geography, University of Victoria
  This article is a summary of current holistic wellness literature, involving online database keyword searches, additional searches for other studies, screening of abstracts, assessing the relevance to the review and integrating the findings. More than 300 journal articles, books and websites were examined or accessed to determine how wellness was defined and to find research and wellness models. A complete report and wellness mapping products can be found at www.geog.uvic.ca/wellness.
  
  
• Wellbeing: conceptual issues and implications for interdisciplinary work
  Sarah Edmunds Department of Psychology, University of Westminster
  Wellbeing is a common term in both policy and academia but it is often used in a conceptually vague way and means different things to different people.These issues may limit its potential to create the positive changes that are intended by those who promote wellbeing. Interdisciplinary research and practice offers great potential to further our understanding of, and ability to enhance, wellbeing. However, this type of research is challenging.
  
  
• Work at the nef Centre for Well-being
  Juliet Michaelson Researcher, Centre for Well-being, nef
  nef is an independent think-and-do tank founded in 1986 that inspires and demonstrates real economic well-being. nef's vision is of a society where wealth is defined and measured in terms of wellbeing. This means recognising and supporting what really makes us happy ? such as meaningful work, time with our friends and family, creative education, and a real sense of community. nef believes only then can we move towards a truly flourishing society.
  
  
• Is it all downhill from day one at medical school?
  Jessica Morgan, Funke Adefope, Amy Bissell,Angela Clarke, David Collins,Michaela Harvey, Ian Kear,Danielle Lednor, Anna Stubbs,Craig Brown Brighton and Sussex Medical School
  This paper investigates how wellbeing is affected during progression through years one to four of medical school. It used a one-time only self-rated wellbeing question. The results obtained suggests that wellbeing may decline through medical school and confirms some previous studies that males seem to rate higher than females in wellbeing scores. This was a useful pilot tool and further surveys are now required.
  
  
• Is it all downhill from day one at medical school?
  Jessica Morgan, Funke Adefope, Amy Bissell,Angela Clarke, David Collins,Michaela Harvey, Ian Kear,Danielle Lednor, Anna Stubbs,Craig Brown Brighton and Sussex Medical School
  This paper investigates how wellbeing is affected during progression through years one to four of medical school. It used a one-time only self-rated wellbeing question. The results obtained suggests that wellbeing may decline through medical school and confirms some previous studies that males seem to rate higher than females in wellbeing scores. This was a useful pilot tool and further surveys are now required.
  
  
• The community and the chocolate factory
  William House
  A new strategy for wellbeing
  
  
• The heart of wellbeing: A self-help approach to recovering, sustaining and improving wellbeing
  Craig Brown GP and Jan Alcoe Trainer
  This article outlines the development of a book and CD called The heart of well-being: seven tools for surviving and thriving that aids individuals to maintain and improve their wellbeing - physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. It describes the background to developing the resource from a healthcare training programme on values and spirituality, and provides a summary of the methodology and content with illustrative examples.
  
  
• Reframing the wellbeing debate: It's political not scientific
  William Bloom Author, educator, activist in the field of holistic development
  Holistic health practitioners know that an essential part of wellbeing is our connection with the wonder and energy of nature and all life. But they are often excluded from mainstream medicine due to accusations of 'bad science' especially when they mention energy, qi or prana. This paper suggests that practitioners move on from that debate and be encouraged by the NHS's full support of spirituality in best practice. It also encourages practitioners to write Holistic whenever they are asked to fill in a form with a religion box.
  
  
• Improving global wellbeing, improving personal wellbeing
  Jason Ferdjani Medical student
  The BHMA runs an annual student essay prize with a ?250 prize for the winner. Here we print this year's winner.
  
  
• Applied 'generative space': improving health and wellbeing through your practice environment
  Wayne Ruga Founder and President,The CARITAS Project
  This article discusses 'generative space' as being the sustainable means to improve health, healthcare, and wellbeing with the environment. The article is a brief report on an advanced phase of original research, spanning seven years, being conducted in five countries by the author.
  
  
• The Positive Care Programme: A holistic approach for people with long-term illness and carers
  Su Mason Director of the Positive Care Programme
  The Positive Care Programme is a registered, Leeds-based charity, which provides a free 24-week course of complementary therapies and motivational workshops for people with long-term health problems and unpaid carers. It is designed to give attention to the mind, body and spirit, so that over time positive change may be experienced.
  
  
• Does mindfulness increase wellbeing?
  Caroline Hoffman Clinical Director and Research Co-ordinator, Breast Cancer Haven
  Since the 1960s interest in mindfulness and its practice in the west has been steadily growing. Mindfulness programmes such as Jon Kabat-inn devised 30 years ago have supported the introduction of mindfulness practice into healthcare, education and society. As people search out ways for preventing illness and improving their health and wellbeing, the need for such non-doctrine based programmes has never been greater. The increasing number of health professionals providing mindfulness programmes reflects this, as does the recent burst of healthrelated research in the area, which this paper overviews.
  
  

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