Benchmark- Patient’s Spiritual Needs: Case Analysis
Should the physician allow Mike to continue making decisions that seem to him be irrational and harmful to James?
It is essential for the physician to apply wisdom and the need to protect life as one of the codes in nursing as a basis for calling out Mike’s irrational decision. From the physician’s medical experience and expertise, it is clear that James has a complication, and his conditioning is worsening if the recommended treatment, which is a kidney transplant, will not be sort after. Taking the position of an expert and the nursing code that requires physicians to protect life, it is recommended that the physician should act in the best interest of James and save his life.
The principle of beneficence requires the physician to do anything in their power to preserve lives (Pope, Hough, & Chase, 2016). According to the principles of bioethics, the patients should be given the ability to make an autonomous decision that concerns their health as long as they are in the position to make decisions (Pope, Hough, & Chase, 2016). However, in the case scenario, James is eight years old patient. Therefore, he is not in a position to make autonomous decisions concerning his health. James’ parents are expected to act in the best interest of their son by doing anything in their power to save his life.
On the other hand, James’s parents are staunched Christians, and they believe that by seeking divine intervention, they are providing James with the necessary help in their power. This is because they believe in the healing power of God. It is essential for the physician to respect patient autonomy, which is regarded in the case scenario to be the decision made by the parent. However, it is also essential for the physician to take charge and control should there be an intuition that rightfully shows that the patient life might be in danger if proper clinical guidelines are not followed.
How ought Christian think about sickness and health? How should a Christian think about medical intervention? What should Mike as a Christian do? How should he reason about trusting God and treating James in relation to what is truly honoring the principles of beneficence and non-maleficence in James’s care?
According to SSorajjakool, Carr, Nam, Sorajjakool, & Bursey (2017), Christians view of sickness show God’s caring nature to human beings. On the other hand, Christian view healing as a symbol of God’s triumphs over sickness. It is worth noting that Christians turn to God for healing because the bible documents the mighty healing power of God. However, Christians also believe in the ability to trust God’s power and his will in human lives (SSorajjakool, Carr, Nam, Sorajjakool, & Bursey 2017). Christians should perceive medical intervention as one of the miraculous ways through which God intervenes to heal humankind. It is essential for Christians to believe in God’s healing power and not the doctor’s just as the saying goes that “doctors treat, but God heals” (Razzaghi, & Afshar, 2016).
Christians ought to understand that God is the one who gave mankind the ability to create medical intervention (Razzaghi, & Afshar, 2016). Therefore, seeking medical intervention is not undermining God’s healing power but is appreciating the mysterious nature of God and his ability to use various vessels to accomplish His mission. This can include utilizing medicine in healing. As a Christian, Mike ought to understand that trusting God’s healing power can be manifested not only through prayers but through people too. By virtue of being a Christian, Mike ought to have faith that God can still use the medicine as a channel of healing James. Therefore, as a Christian, Might allow James to undergo the kidney transplant but, at the same time, still, seek God’s intervention through prayers.
The principle of beneficence and non-maleficence manifest its self through the intention of both parents and the physician to act in a manner that safeguards James from any intentional harm (Razzaghi, & Afshar, 2016). Beneficence requires the medics to acts in the best interest of their patients. Hence, in this scenario, by the doctor using his expertise to recommend a kidney transplant in order to alleviate James’ condition, it portrays that the physician is taking James’ interest at heart. Allowing James’s parents to seek spiritual intervention can lead to James’s life deteriorating. This can be said to be non-maleficence. This is because this might be implied as harmful to James indirectly. In this case, scenario, trusting God’s for the healing without giving medical intervention, a try can be equated to the ability to harm James. From the Cristian world view, it is only recommendable to trust God’ and the same time seeks for medical intervention.
How would a spiritual needs assessment help the physician assist Mike in determining appropriate interventions for James and for his family or others involved in his care?
Spiritual need assessment in healthcare involves the ability of the physician or the nurse to prob the patient by asking questions that regard the patient’s belief, source of expectation, and spirituality (McSherry, Ross, Balthip, Ross, & Young, 2019). According to the nursing code of practice, a spiritual needs assessment should be among the preliminary assessment that the physician or the nurse ought to conduct to the patient in order to determine the patient’s spiritual health. This assists the nurse or the physician in approaching the patient in a manner that upholds the patient’s beliefs and spiritual matters. Consequently, the spiritual need assessment is significant because it assists the healthcare professional in addressing issues related to spirituality and faith that might arise during the health care provision (McSherry, Ross, Balthip, Ross, & Young, 2019).
It is essential for the physician to be aware of the patient’s spiritual goals. This can give the health care professional attending to the patient a better view on how to handle these matters. By doing a spiritual need assessment, the physician would have easily pointed out that Mike and Joanne are firm believers. Hence, this should have given the physician the ability to address James’s parents in a way that can make them feel that their spiritual need is not only respected but also the medical intervention is equally important and should be respected. For instance, the physician should have allowed them to allow their son to seek medical intervention as recommended but also take James to church to be prayed for.
The physician should clearly explain the role of spirituality and seeking medical intention in the life of James in a way that the parents can be convinced to allow the son to undergo the treatment. It is crucial for the physician to remain neutral in the matters of faith by supporting both the parent’s spirituality but also emphasizing the need to still take James through the kidney plant treatment. Understanding the spiritual needs assessment of the patient allows the physician to be emphatical and make Mike and Joanne feel that the physician is feeling their pain and the hardship that they are going through.
References
SSorajjakool, S., Carr, M. F., Nam, J. J., Sorajjakool, S., & Bursey, E. (2017). World religions for healthcare professionals. Routledge.
McSherry, W., Ross, L., Balthip, K., Ross, N., & Young, S. (2019). Spiritual Assessment in Healthcare: An Overview of Comprehensive, Sensitive Approaches to Spiritual Assessment for Use Within the Interdisciplinary Healthcare Team. In Spirituality in Healthcare: Perspectives for Innovative Practice (pp. 39-54). Springer, Cham
Pope, B., Hough, M. C., & Chase, S. (2016). Ethics in community nursing. Online Journal of Health Ethics, 12(2), 3