Caring For A Terminally Ill Patient Can Be A Difficult

Cultural consideration must be taken into account when discussing end-of-life issues with patients and family members. One cannot assume that cultural affiliation equals a deep connection to cultural beliefs and affiliation with one or more groups should not be used as an assumption about

Health in all cultures is an important aspect of life. A person’s cultural background, religion and/or beliefs, greatly influences a person’s health and their response to medical care (Spector, 2004). These diverse cultures guide decisions made in daily life; what food eaten, living arrangements made, medications taken and medical advice listened to. A nurse must be knowledgeable and respectful of these diverse cultures and understand their importance when providing care. This understanding helps to build a strong nurse/patient relationship, increasing patient compliance, which ensures positive outcomes are met. Patients who are satisfied

Death is inevitable. It is one of the only certainties in life. Regardless, people are often uncomfortable discussing death. Nyatanga (2016) posits that the idea of no longer existing increases anxiety and emotional distress in relation to one’s mortality. Because of the difficulty in level of care for end-of-life patients, the patient and the family often need professional assistance for physical and emotional care. Many family caregivers are not professionally trained in medicine, and this is where hospice comes into play. Hospice aims to meet the holistic needs of both the patient and the patient’s family through treatment plans, education, and advocacy. There is a duality of care to the treatment provided by hospice staff in that they do not attempt to separate the patient’s care from the family’s care. Leming and Dickinson (2011) support that hospice, unlike other clinical fields, focuses on the patient and the family together instead of seeing the patient independent of the family. Many times in hospitals, the medical team focuses solely on the goal of returning the patient back to health in order for them to return to their normal lives. They do not take into account the psychological and spiritual components of the patient’s journey and the journey that the family must take as well. For treatment of the patient, Leming and Dickinson agree that hospice does not attempt to cure patients, and instead concentrates solely

The care of dying patients and their relatives is one of the most difficult aspects of a doctor 's job. Enabling an individual to die with dignity can also be deeply rewarding. Britain today is a cosmopolitan society made up of people from numerous religious and cultural traditions. The care of patients with backgrounds different from one 's own requires knowledge and skills. There are approximately 2 million Muslims in the UK1.

2.4 Explain how beliefs, religion and culture of individuals and key people may influence end of life care

Multiple family members gather together to give care to the loved one from far and near. The father or the oldest male relative holds the greatest power in most families to make health-related decisions for an ill loved one. Family members feel responsible for bathing, changing, and feeding their loved one daily even during hospital stays (Taxis, 2008). In addition, prayer and ritual are also critical components of the dying process. Family members may pray with the patient at the bedside, at a home altar, or at church. At times, candles are kept lit for 24 hours a day as a symbol of continuous worship. Clergy members may visit to offer spiritual support. As the ill loved one approaches death, the sacrament of anointing of the sick is administered by a priest or lay member (Kemp, 2001). Mexican American families use religious beliefs in the afterlife to help them cope with this emotional process.

Culture is a multifaceted characters of a diverse sets of people that have a common ground on values, languages, emotions and identity. It is a symbolic communication perpetuated in a much larger society that influence by means of conditioning and imitation from one generation to the next. Knowledge of cultural diversity is crucial at all levels of nursing practice. It require nurses to be challenge on a multilevel amplitude of social character and commitment. It is empirical that the nurse consider specific cultural factors impacting on each individual patients and be able to recognize its differences. The impact of cultural diversity on each patient start with the nurse as a co-provider and influence on the perceptions, interpretations and behaviors of a particular specific cultural group. Nurses need to understand the validity of how culture minded patients understand life process, health, illness, death, and dying. Through collaboration and scientific evidence of multicultural society can bring about a culturally-relevant and responsive services.

The African-American cultural view of death is one of normalcy. They view death as comfortable and familiar. The sanctity of life and its preservation is extremely important within African-American culture but when death comes it is considered natural and an accepted part of life (Barrett, 2002). This differs from the traditional American cultural perspective that after the mid to late 1900’s came to view death as unnatural and something to be hidden (Corr, 2009). African-American culture may consider death to be a natural part of life but the sanctity of life is also very important to them. For this reason African-Americans are more inclined to aggressively pursue life saving treatments than those from traditional American culture (Barrett, 2005). Members of African-American culture are also less likely to want to talk about or deal with end of life decision-making (Welch, 2005).

All throughout history nursing and medicine was based on the roots of Christianity. Many healthcare providers based their practices from the bible “I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me” (Matthew 25:36, NIV). Furthermore, spirituality is an important aspect to remain in our nursing practice. In order to provide holistic care for our patients during their healing process, which includes body, soul, and spirit, Christianity should continue to be practiced with our patients. The purpose of this paper is to discuss my personal worldview based upon the meaning of spiritualty, worldviews, prime reality, human person, the meaning of death, epistemology, ethics, and the meaning of human

As complex an issue as physician assisted-death is, it is also one of great merit that offers an opportunity to explore a better understanding of the human experience. Physician assisted-death is often coupled with the term euthanasia and although it can be seen as a form of euthanasia, it differs in that the patient is in the control of the process through which they commit the act of suicide. In the consideration of the role of a human service professional during the procedure that is physician assisted-death (PAD), it is important to note the cultural and socioeconomic differences that affect both the understanding of PAD and a patient’s decision about the matter. A person’s ethno-cultural identity will give them a certain view on what

end of life can be a distressing time for patients, families, and healthcare providers. Cultural

Let us turn to cultural aspects of care during the grief and bereavement. Cultural aspects of care during this time is usually considered along with spiritual needs. It is important to be aware of cultural aspects of care in order to support the patient and family. Respecting cultural practices is key in providing care during this difficult time (Kazanowski, 2013). Cultural diversity refers to the differences between people based on a shared ideology and valued set of beliefs, norms, and customs (American Nurses Association). For example, it is important for the medical professional to realize that in Asian cultures, telling a patient directly that they have cancer is thought of as very cruel. In Hispanic and Chinese cultures, family members protect their loved one from knowing that they may be terminally ill. Many African Americans have negative attitudes toward hospice care. More African American and Hispanics want to be kept alive regardless of how ill they are compared to European-Americans (Herbert, Moore, Rooney, 2011).

I believe in one God, the Father almighty, the maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen./ and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages, light of light, true God of true God, begotten, not made, of one substance with the Father, by whom all things where made…

Phase I and consent discusses the issue of a patient that is terminally ill and a doctor that wants this patient to participate in a clinical trial. This study would not treat the patient’s disease, but it would allow the physician and the researchers to determine the toxicity of the medication Novamed. The patient understands that she is dying and she believes that she does not have anything to lose by doing the trial. The doctor wants to make sure the patient understands that Novamed will most likely no help her and the doctor would like her to be fully informed prior to her signing the consent. The moral issue of this case study is should a patient that is terminally ill participate in the Phase I trial of the study which will most

There are over 4,200 religions throughout the entire world but I grew up in a Christian home believing that God is the way, the truth, and the life. Christianity is a religion of grace and mercy, but many people struggle to believe in a transcendent figure that they cannot see. I was taught that all concepts in the Bible were valid through the Nazarene church; these beliefs are confirmed, in my opinion by the plenary theory of inspiration. This is what I grew up believing about the Bible.