The British Journal of Psychiatry 128: 588-594 (1976)
© 1976 The Royal College of Psychiatrists
The medical model of the disease concept
FK Taylor
According to the medical model of the disease concept, a class of patients
is homogeneous only when it is characterized by manifestations which have
their ultimate intra-organismic origin in a particular kind of
physio-pathological cause. Most patient classes are still heterogeneous
because we are still ignorant of that cause. The medical model can be
applied to the subdivision of all classes of patients, including classes of
non-organic psychiatric patients. However, the successful application of
the medical model depends on the acquisition of knowledge of relevant
physiopathological facts. It is argued that the dimensional model of
evaluating psychological abnormalities is not likely to help in acquiring
that knowledge.
