Representations of chronic illnesses

Abstract

The great majority of human beings hold citizenship in the kingdom of the well for the most part of their lives. Major episodes of significant morbidity come into play, on average, in the last few years of our existence on earth (Hoffman et al., 1996). However, for an increasing number of people, chronic illness becomes part of their citizenship. Given the epidemiological transition that is taking place in industrialised countries (Olshansky and Ault, 1986), no longer are acute illnesses the most serious threats to our lives; chronic illnesses have become the primary challenges that we will have to accommodate in our existence.