Navigating Conflicts Between Spiritual-Religious Beliefs and Healthcare Delivery- Key Issues and Examples

Navigating Conflicts Between Spiritual-Religious Beliefs and Healthcare Delivery- Key Issues and Examples

Various studies have shown a link between the heightened quality of life and spirituality. For instance, one study shows that about 70 percent of participants with cancer claimed to have an enhanced functional quality of life due to religion and spirituality. However, spirituality often clashes with health, as observed in such aspects as refusing organ donations, refusing parents to have their children immunized, and refusing blood transfusion for patients who have been critically injured. For instance, Jehovah’s Witness believes that there should be no blood transfusion conducted under any circumstance. The hospitals and physicians are usually released from any responsibility in the event of any damage caused by one’s refusal to get the blood (Advocate Health, n.d). Some of the Native Americans, like Navajos, also do not allow for organ donation, and very few of them perform circumcision of male infants (Advocate Health, n.d).

Realizing the importance of spirituality in healthcare, most physicians are advised to dialogue with the patient to address spirituality during the primary care level and before any advanced illness (Maldonado, 2021). Having a questionnaire that seeks to find the importance of spirituality in the life of the patient can also help in the provision of spiritually appropriate care. In doing so, healthcare workers are able to gauge how they can incorporate spiritual elements into the plan of care of the patient. Besides, spirituality is generally an elusive and very general term and, therefore, might confuse healthcare workers. It is important to ensure that the health professions undergo constant training on matters of spirituality to equip them with the relevant skills and competence in respecting and incorporating the spiritual elements of patients into their healthcare.

References

Advocate Health. (n.d). Guidelines For Health Care Providers Interacting With Jehovah’s Witnesses And Their Families. Retrieved from CG-Jehovah’s Witnesses-3line.doc (advocatehealth.com)

Advocate Health. (n.d). Guidelines For Health Care Providers Interacting With American Indian (Native American; First Nation) Patients And Their Families. Retrieved From Microsoft Word – Cg-Native American-3line.Doc (Advocatehealth.Com)

Maldonado, A.J. (2021, May 14). Spirituality and Health. Harvard Medical School for Primary Care. Retrieved from Spirituality and Health (harvard.edu)

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Instructions

• As you did this week’s readings and watched this week’s videos, what surfaced for you as potential clashes between spiritual/religious beliefs and our healthcare delivery system? Describe one or two situations that rose to the top of the list for you. Cite specific examples from the two spiritual/religious groups you choose from the Advocate Healthcare Website as part of your response.

Navigating Conflicts Between Spiritual-Religious Beliefs and Healthcare Delivery- Key Issues and Examples

• What are health organizations doing to provide spiritually appropriate care to their patients/consumers? Is this enough, or is there more the health profession could be doing?