Health Care Provider and Faith Diversity
Health Care Provider and Faith Diversity
Grand Canyon University
HLT-310V
September 19, 2013
Abstract
As a heath care provider it is important to assess our patient’s faith. To a lot of people faith and spirituality play a large part in their overall health and healing. Health care providers cannot be expected to know about every kind of faith in the world but assessing and talking with patients regarding their personal beliefs will help with understanding more about patients and their view on their health. To better understand three of the world’s very popular religions this writer will discuss the spiritual perspective on healing, the critical components of healing, and what is important to people of a particular faith when cared for by health care providers. The three religions that will be discussed are Sikhism, Shintoism, and Buddhism. This writer will also compare these faiths to the Christian philosophy of faith and healing.
Health Care Provider and Faith Diversity
The first of three religions that will be discussed is Sikhism. There are twenty million Sikhs in the world and is the world’s fifth largest religion (Queensland Health, 2011). The religion was founded in the sixteenth century in the Punjab region of India (Queensland Health, 2011). The Sikhs spiritual views on healing include praying to God for help recovering from an illness. The people of the Sikh faith are encouraged to accept death and illness as a part of life and the will of God. Sikhs have close family relations and it may be common for patients to have many visitors while in the hospital. The critical components of healing for the Sikhs are prayer, which can be performed anywhere and is usually done three times a day. Another component of healing for people that practice Sikhism is mediation to help relieve anxiety and depression, as well as, listening to sacred music and hymns (Queensland Health, 2011). Sikhism combines the use of modern
Grand Canyon University
HLT-310V
September 19, 2013
Abstract
As a heath care provider it is important to assess our patient’s faith. To a lot of people faith and spirituality play a large part in their overall health and healing. Health care providers cannot be expected to know about every kind of faith in the world but assessing and talking with patients regarding their personal beliefs will help with understanding more about patients and their view on their health. To better understand three of the world’s very popular religions this writer will discuss the spiritual perspective on healing, the critical components of healing, and what is important to people of a particular faith when cared for by health care providers. The three religions that will be discussed are Sikhism, Shintoism, and Buddhism. This writer will also compare these faiths to the Christian philosophy of faith and healing.
Health Care Provider and Faith Diversity
The first of three religions that will be discussed is Sikhism. There are twenty million Sikhs in the world and is the world’s fifth largest religion (Queensland Health, 2011). The religion was founded in the sixteenth century in the Punjab region of India (Queensland Health, 2011). The Sikhs spiritual views on healing include praying to God for help recovering from an illness. The people of the Sikh faith are encouraged to accept death and illness as a part of life and the will of God. Sikhs have close family relations and it may be common for patients to have many visitors while in the hospital. The critical components of healing for the Sikhs are prayer, which can be performed anywhere and is usually done three times a day. Another component of healing for people that practice Sikhism is mediation to help relieve anxiety and depression, as well as, listening to sacred music and hymns (Queensland Health, 2011). Sikhism combines the use of modern
References: BBC Religions. (2013). Buddhism. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/ BBC Religions. (2013). Shinto. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/shinto/ Hawter, V. P. (1995). Healing: A tibetan buddhist perspective. Retrieved September 5, 2013, from http://www.buddhanet.net/tib_heal.htm Loma Linda University Health System. (2011). Health care and religious beliefs. Retrieved from http://lomalindahealth.org/media/medical-center/departments/employee-wholeness/healthcare-religious-beliefs.pdf Queensland Health. (2011). Community profiles for healthcare providers: Japanese australians. Retrieved from http://www.health.qld.gov.au/multicultural/health_workers/Japanese2011.pdf Queensland Health. (2011). Health care provider’s handbook on sikh patients. Retrieved from http://www.health.qld.gov.au/multicultural/support_tools/hbook-sikh.pdf