Abstract
In their management of risk, medical schemes are keenly interested in wellness
programmes. Evidence of their interest in wellness is based on the number of medical
schemes that offer, encourage and incentivise membership to wellness programmes
The Homeopathic Association of South Africa (HSA) recently rebranded the
Homeopathic profession as “The Wellness Profession”, providing an opportunity for
Homeopathic practitioners to promote and encourage wellness as well as provide
wellness services on behalf of medical schemes. The problem that arises is that
Homeopathic practitioners do not fully understand how medical schemes perceive
wellness.
The primary research question posed in this study was: How do medical schemes
perceive wellness? The aim of this study was to explore the perceptions of wellness at
South African medical schemes in order to develop a set of recommendations for
Homeopathic practitioners who may wish to align themselves with medical scheme
philosophies and expectations regarding wellness.
This research is qualitative, exploratory and descriptive in nature and used a grounded
theory methodology. Purposive sampling was used to identify and recruit informants
from medical schemes registered with the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) that
were involved in wellness promotion. Informants were invited to participate in a semistructured,
in-depth 60 minute, face to face interview on the topic of wellness. Interviews
were transcribed verbatim.
Data was analysed using open, axial and selective coding to reveal four categories,
namely: defining wellness, determining wellness, promoting wellness and partnering
with healthcare practitioners. Further analysis revealed the core category to be
integration.
This study found that insofar as theoretical descriptions are concerned, wellness was
not comprehensively or universally understood. Although there was no consensus the
nature, definition or model of wellness, schemes did agree that wellness was an
ongoing process, prevention focussed, multidimensional, holistic and included an
element of balance. This study also found that medical schemes actively promote
wellness amongst their members mainly as a strategy for economic sustainability. They
have very well developed wellness promotional and communication strategies that are...
M.Tech. (Homoeopathy)