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My Patient-Practitioner Experiences

Decent Essays

The sociological theory of Functionalism takes upon the perspective that society consists of systematic processes, which revolve around set structures. Functionalist theory allows for the creation of health and illness as variables (Stam, 2000). These variables all lead to development and require that certain structures be used to restore proper function. The intended purpose of this reflective piece is to identify how my Patient-Practitioner experiences could be viewed from the sociological theory of functionalism. The essay will present a case study and then proceed to analyse the case through the lens of functionalism. The analysis will include limitations of functionalism and consider implications of this analysis upon future paramedic practice.

Whilst on placement, the ambulance was dispatched to a patient who had attempted suicide. The patient was unstable and distraught. Upon examination the patient was found to have a medical history of Spinal Muscular Atrophy. Spinal Muscular Atrophy is a disorder that is commonly associated with spinal motor neuron loss (Arnold, Kassar & Kissel, 2014). They were diagnosed with this at a young age and the effect of this disorder proved too much for them to handle. The ambulance crew treated injuries …show more content…

The person in need of an ambulance could not perform their normal societal role any longer due to the injury that occurred. This resulted in the patient feeling unable to continue living in their present state. This means that they could be classified as a ‘Sick-Person’, due to the fact that they can no longer perform a normal societal role. In the case I witnessed the ‘Sick-Person’ exhibited some of the inabilities to continue in a normal role such as being emotionally upset, feeling helpless and doing things without much resistance. This gave a clear indication of the failure to continue being a normal functioning person from the perspective of

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