The Application of Salutogenesis in Primary Care

Abstract

Primary care is understood as the first contact point to medical care. It operates at the interface between the social and the health systems, between the patient with his or her family and the professional environment, and refers to the local population, while primary health care, following WHO, is defined as a whole-of-society approach envisioned to contribute to universal health coverage and equality. This chapter is dedicated primarily to the application of salutogenesis in primary care. Since primary care services are a complex of strongly interrelated professional practice, research, and supporting policy, applying salutogenesis in primary care comprehensively should introduce salutogenesis in all these fields simultaneously. This chapter examines how salutogenesis is addressed and discussed in policy, research, and practice of primary care and discusses the application of salutogenesis as an orientation, a model, and the construct of ‘sense of coherence’. Thus, it contributes to supporting the application of salutogenesis in primary care and provides an outlook on further research needs.