The "SOME PEOPLE" Essays
How Do You Define Health? The Voices of Do No Harm | Edited by Kimberly J. Soenen
Philip A. Verhoef
”I suppose that because one can have “good health” and “bad health,” I would describe health as the inherent functioning of the living organism. Being in “good health” means that the organism is working well, as intended/designed (sometimes depending on your religious philosophy). Making healthy choices means choosing activities that don’t compromise the health of the organism, and may improve its functioning. Your health can be influenced...but there is an inherent characteristic to it, presumably born out of your genetics, socioeconomic status, or any of the other elements of the social determinants of health. I don’t think we “deserve” to be healthy...however, I do think that we deserve access to care that will promote our health, or allow us to maintain the good health we already have, or keep us from sinking further into bad health."
-Philip A. Verhoef, MD, PhD, FAAP, FACP
Adult and Pediatric Intensivist and Hospitalist
Associate Program Director of Inpatient Internal Medicine Residency Program at Kaiser Permanente in Hawaii
Number of years practicing medicine: 20
(Photo by Riley Gunderson.)