Health as a Verb: A Conversation with Dr. Patricia Welch Saleeby

In this inspiring episode of Health-ing, hosts Ushma Issar and Thomas Plochg welcome Dr. Patricia Welch Saleeby, a global leader in health, disability, functioning, and social work. As an equity scholar, WHO advisor, and advocate for inclusive systems, Patricia’s work bridges health, social care, and human flourishing, challenging us to rethink health not as a static state but as a dynamic, contextual process—a verb, not a noun. Patricia begins by sharing her personal journey, from being discouraged from pursuing medical school due to a chronic heart condition to finding her calling in social work. This experience fueled her passion for functioning over limitation, leading her to co-develop the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF)—a complementary framework to the traditional disease-focused ICD. The ICF captures not just diagnoses but how health conditions interact with environmental, social, and personal factors, emphasizing that health is a continuous dance between individuals and their contexts. The conversation dives into the power of systems thinking. Patricia argues that health cannot be siloed; it thrives when we integrate social determinants, technology, and collaborative frameworks like FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources) and HL7 standards. She highlights projects like Gravity and PASIO, which embed ICF codes into digital health records, enabling a more holistic understanding of patient needs. Her vision? A world where healthcare systems operate like gardens, not garages—nurturing ecosystems rather than repairing isolated parts. A key theme emerges: Equity as a foundation for health. Patricia’s Capability Equity Framework merges Amartya Sen’s capability approach with the ICF, advocating for systems that remove barriers to flourishing. She stresses that health is not a luxury—it’s a universal right that demands cross-disciplinary collaboration. Whether it’s social prescribing, reimbursement models tied to upstream interventions, or simply creating spaces for "irrelevant" conversations (those serendipitous exchanges that spark innovation), her work champions breaking down silos. Patricia’s optimism is infectious. She sees a tipping point: new generations of healthcare professionals are embracing social determinants, and technology is enabling data-driven, context-aware care. Yet, she acknowledges the challenge: shifting from a mechanistic, profit-driven model to one that values collective well-being requires bold leadership, humility, and a willingness to redefine success. As she puts it, "We’re not repairing cars—we’re tending gardens." Her call to action? Keep the dialogue alive. Whether through WHO, the UN, or grassroots collaborations, Patricia is committed to fostering connections between economists, technologists, social workers, and policymakers. For her, the next five years are about scaling equity—proving that health-ing isn’t just idealistic, but economically and socially transformative. Join the movement. What if the future of health lies in asking: How do we cultivate ecosystems where everyone can flourish?