Limitations of the biomedical paradigm in geriatrics institutions

Abstract

The social perception of ageing related to the loss of both physical and psychological functions that determine in many cases
the institutionalization of the elderly in nursing homes, leads to a medical care focused on a biomedical model, centered on
organic factors as determinants of the illness.
Illness is not an isolated condition in an individual, but has a subjective and social dimension. For this reason the biographic
history becomes the main reference point in the care of the elderly.
People experiment their disease within a narrative that gives a meaning to their experience; but this is not considered by the
biomedical model, where the psychosocial factors that influence the onset or progression of the pathology are disregarded.
This article attempts to explore the problem that arises when the care of the elderly that reside in geriatric institutions is centered
on the biomedical model.