Transdisciplinary approach to children' s health, a prerequisite for good outcomes

Abstract

The modern age, the development of science and medicine require different approach to child health care. There is an increasing need for gathering and cooperation of experts representing different disciplines and fields of activity. Numerous specializations and subspecializations in healthcare contribute to the quality and quantity of knowledge, but the fragmentation of healthcare contributes to the loss of breadth. We must unify knowledge and move away from the traditional organization where each expert deals with only one segment of medicine without entering the field of another expert. This is a multidisciplinary approach where there is cooperation but along the boundaries of individual disciplines. A more advanced system is an interdisciplinary approach in which experts work together in overlapping areas, jointly detect the problem, and determine a common methodological framework for its solution. The greatest potential for responding to new demands and the greatest power is represented by a transdisciplinary approach, which consists of experts from various profiles and fields of activity. It is a comprehensive framework that considers the breadth of needs of individuals in today's world. The goal is to understand the human condition, not focusing on just one segment of the problem (Nicolescu 1998).

The prefix trans contains everything that is over, between, above, and beyond all disciplines. This approach involves the process of increasing knowledge by transforming different points of view (Unesco 1998).

By developing a transdisciplinary approach, we can develop the idea of science as a form of life, expand new perspectives, and use the knowledge of unified disciplines. It opens up a space for freedom, understanding, and tolerance (Nicolescu 2002), and the possibility of cooperation with related professions, non-health professions, civil society organizations, healthcare associates, experts in the field of education, social welfare, and private institutions. The literature states that the creator of the transdisciplinary approach is Jean Piaget, a Swiss psychologist (Neuchatel, August 9, 1896-Geneva, September 16, 1980), professor of child psychology at the University of Geneva, one of the most important researchers of children's cognitive development, and the founder of epistemology as an experimental science. He researched the development of concepts and language, children's interactive behavior, and mental manipulation of symbols. However, perhaps the old African proverb "It takes a whole village to raise a child" already carries a grain of transdisciplinary in itself.

The growth and development of a child require cooperation between various professions, contact, communication, an inspiring environment, freedom and love. In interaction with the environment, the child creates his own picture of the world, and it is up to us to help him in this, each within the framework of his profession, acquired knowledge and adopted competences.