An ecological model for health, illness and medicine: Pathogenesis and healing as self-organising processes in semiotic biofields

This research draws upon process philosophy and complexity-oriented biology to propose an alternative to the mechanistic/reductionist paradigm dominating medicine. The ecological model conceives disease in terms of entrained responses to felt needs (or problems) and healing in terms of the reconfiguration of these responses towards a coherent response of the whole person. The model is compared with existing psychotherapies and holistic medicine that understand mind and body as a coherent field, and employ low-force interventions designed to prompt healing processes rather than control symptoms. The implications of the model for research and healthcare practices are discussed .