Religious Exploration

Religious exploration in healthcare is a very important consideration especially for Christians who are also healthcare professionals. One’s faith usually informs their worldview and this may become important in the way that a nurse treats a patient. For this reason, nurses are taught early to separate their own beliefs and convictions from what is expected of them to be culturally competent and sensitive. Part of caring for a patient holistically for the nurse involves giving spiritual care to the patient (White, 2011). What this means is not imposing the nurse’s spiritual beliefs on the helpless patient. Rather, it is appealing to the patient’s own spirituality in helping them to heal and return back to health. In the event that it is a terminal illness such as advanced cancer, appealing to the patient’s spirituality will help them accept their fate and deal with it positively in the thought of an afterlife as many religions teach. The purpose of this paper is to conduct an interview with a religious leader from a faith other than that of the interviewer; and also to attend one of their religious services to note their rituals and practices.  Religious Exploration Assignment Essay Paper

1. Interview with a Religious Leader of a Different Faith
2. In what ways do the rituals of this religion help the ill individual support their spiritual health

The rituals of this religion help the sick individual to support their spiritual health by directing them and their suffering to Allah (God). The rituals are aimed at letting the individual know that there is none other who is more powerful than the most high. He is the one who is righteous and also with the power to bring about healing. In the religion of Islam, one must pray facing Mecca. This is the sacred city that houses the holiest sites and shrines of the Islamic faith. This ritual alone makes the sick individual feel connected to the holy sites and to Allah himself. There is also the ritual of washing one’s feet before entering the place of worship. This is symbolic in that it signifies that the person has washed his or her feet of the sins and transgressions that they may have committed before coming to worship. For the sick person, it may also signify that they are washing away the disease and that they will be delivered from their misery. The other ritual or practice of praying together fosters a sense of community and this is invaluable in helping the ill person cope with spirituality (Imam M. Alfan, personal communication, June 21, 2021).

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1. What does a nurse or healthcare provider need to know about a person of this religion’s beliefs and rituals/practices to facilitate support of the ill individual’s spiritual health?

The thing that a nurse needs to know concerning a person of this other religion’s beliefs and practices to facilitate their spiritual health are the same as those stated above. First and foremost they need to know that Allah is the most gracious and the most merciful. This means that he is forgiving of sins and also capable of healing the sick. The nurse also needs t know about the ritual or practice of praying at least five times in a single day. This knowledge will help the nurse accord the ill patient professing this faith the time and the privacy to do their prayers five times in a day. By doing this alone, the nurse will have appealed to the spirituality of the patient and gained their trust (Orr, 2015). Understanding a patient’s spiritual needs helps them to achieve spiritual satisfaction and boosts their spiritual health. This is especially true if it is coming from a healthcare professional like a nurse caring for the patient. B default, all other interventions that the same nurse employs on the same patient will be received positively and the patient outcomes will be impressive (Imam M. Alfan, personal communication, June 21, 2021).

2. Attendance to One Religious Service of the Different Faith

The religious service that was attended involved evening prayers in a Mosque, invited by the religious leader (Imam) earlier interviewed. I had to follow the rituals right from the beginning by removing my shoes as all Muslims do when they enter their house of prayer. The Imam explained that Muslims also believe in the Bible and that the origin of the ritual of removing shoes is from the historical episode where Allah (God) appeared to Moses (Musa) as a burning bush in the wilderness. At that time, he had commanded Musa to remove his shoes as he was in a holy place. I then also washed my feet just like the other faithful and went ahead and sat on the mat with the rest. I noted that in a Mosque, the other practice or ritual is not sitting on chairs but on mats/ carpets. The Imam explained earlier that Muslims prostrate themselves on the floor as they pray and so having chairs would make it almost impossible to do this. Lastly but not least, I noted that the most conspicuous ritual was that women and girls never mix with the men when they are attending prayers or religious services in a Mosque. The two sexes are actually separated by way of entrance and even where they sit. One cannot even see the women arriving for prayers as opposed to the men.  Religious Exploration Assignment Essay Paper

Findings from the Interviews and Attendance at the Services

The interview conducted with the Imam was quite an eye opener in terms of cultural competence and spiritual awareness. To begin with, the interview revealed that there are several things that are inherent in the religion of Islam that would assist the sick patient with their spiritual health. These are the rituals or practices that are characteristic of the religion. They include praying while facing the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca, removing shoes before entering the prayer area, washing feet after removing shoes, and bowing while kneeling down as one prays. All these are designed to place the faithful closer to Allah and to purify them before going into his presence. In the unfortunate event that the patient dies, the other burial rituals in conformity with the Islamic faith are that the body would be buried with the face of the corpse facing Mecca. This, too, is to direct the spirit or soul towards the holy sites for eternal life.

The attendance to the prayer services was the ultimate experience as it now accorded me the opportunity to see and live the details about the rituals and practices that the Imam had told me during the interview. I had to do everything just as the others were doing them. As explained above, I removed my shoes and washed my feet first before entering the Mosque. I then followed the prayers as I saw the others do. I also noticed the conspicuous absence of women and was later given the explanation that women and men do not mix during prayers to enable both sexes pray without distractions. The personal bias that I felt might affect the way I cared for a Muslim was that they did not believe in Jesus Christ. Well, I was dead wrong. The Imam informed me that every true Muslim must believe in Jesus (Issa). Te only point of departure is that they believe him to be a prophet of God while Christians believe that he is the son of God.

Research Article on Healthcare and/ or Respecting Religious/ Cultural Differences

The PubMed database was searched and an article found relating to the above topic. The article is by Puchalski (2001) and addresses the role that spirituality has or plays in healthcare. The author opines that compassionate care or what can be defined as holistic or spiritual care is the care given to the person in all domains. These include the physical, the emotional, the spiritual, and the social (Puchalski, 2001).

References

Orr, R.D. (2015). Incorporating spirituality in patient care. American Medical Association Journal of Ethics, 17(5), 409-415. https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/incorporating-spirituality-patient-care/2015-05

Puchalski, C.M. (2001). The role of spirituality in healthcare. Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings, 14(4), 352–357. https://doi.org/10.1080/08998280.2001.11927788

White, E.G. (2011). The ministry of healing. White Crow Books.

School of Nursing

Religious Exploration Assignment

Due: Suggest Week 2
Value: 50 points

1. Conduct an interview with a religious leader of a different faith than your own. You want to know: (5 points)
A. In what ways do the rituals of this religion help the ill individual support their spiritual health?
B. What does a nurse or healthcare provider need to know about a person of this religion’s beliefs and rituals/practices to facilitate support of the ill individual’s spiritual health?

2. Attend one religious service of this faith noting rituals/practices.
(10 points)

3. Turn in an essay on your findings from the interview and attendance at the services. Include a description of the service as well as a reflection on any personal bias that might impact your ability to spiritually care for a person of this religion. Essay should be at least 6 paragraphs, including research paragraph in #4, but not exceed 4 pages (typed, double spaced) (10 points)

4. Research the nursing or related literature to find a research article that examines health care of clients with regards to respecting religious/cultural differences. Search the library databases online. Attach the article to your essay and include one paragraph that describes how you feel this article emphasizes your experience. (10 points)

5. Provide a brief Power point presentation that highlights your findings (limit 20 slides). Post on Moodle forum.
(15 points) Refer to the Power point rubric. Religious Exploration Assignment Essay Paper