Risk Factors and Effects of the Morbus: COVID-19 through the Biopsychosocial Model and Ecological Systems Approach to Social Work Practice

ABSTRACT

Utilizing the biopsychosocial model and the ecological systems theory, this disquisition explores on the risk factors associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. The discourse shows the interconnectedness of biological, psychological, and social domains in expatiating on the COVID-19 pandemic. It calls for the need to strengthen the resilience of the global community in the face of health outbreaks such as COVID-19. It emphasizes on the perspectives that pandemics are managed before they emerge through building systems that are resilient. Thus, it appreciates the need for a therapeutic milieu as a building block to resilience. The article calls for the adoption of a developmental stance to analyzing health outbreaks and clinical issues. The adumbration shows the reciprocity effects of the health outbreak [macrocosms] and individual factors [microcosms]. To its end, the paper implies that COVID-19 is a call for integration toward effective health planning between social policy formulators, urban and rural planners, epidemiologists, development practitioners, clinicians, researchers to mention but a few. Ultimately, the paper calls for social workers to consider a developmental-clinical social work approach which helps foster “health in all policies” so as to build resilience against the morbus and limit the proliferation of diseases.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• biopsychosocial model
• ecological systems theory
• social inequalities
• reciprocity

Acknowledgments

A special dedication to the Midlands State University Social Work students in both Clinical and Developmental classes. Wishing you well in your studies.

Disclosure statement

Author declares no conflict of interests.