Question

Essay. Part 1

What is the implication of cultural practices in nursing/health/medicine?

How will you manage cultural practices which do not conform to the principles of nursing and medicine?

Answer 1

CULTURE

Culture is a pattern of ideas,customs and behaviours shared by a purticular people or society.It is constantly evolving.The speed of the cultural evolution varies.It increases when the group migrates and incorporates components of a new culture into their culture of origin.

Implications of the culture to the nursing/health and medicine

1. Concept of etiology and care

Peoples belongs to some culture belives that there are 2 main subtypes for the causes of the disease.

a) Supernatural

• Warmth of god

Peoples belongs to some culture believes that some diseases are a blessing from the god. Eg: small pox and chicken pox,So that they will not provide the treatment and also cases are ot notified and pujas are made to please the god.

• Breach of taboo

Veneral diseases are believed by some to be due to illicit sexual intercourse with a women of low caste or women during menturation

• Past Sins

Leprasy and tuberculosis is occured as a punishment of the past sins from the god.

• Evil eye

​​​​​​​Childrensa are considered to be the most prone to the affcet of evil eye.

• Spirit and Ghost intrusion

​​​​​​​Hysteria and epilepsy are regarded due to the ghost or spirit intrusion into the body.

b) Physical

• Effect of weather

For heat stroke application of oil and ghee are the traetment of choice in some cultral peoples

• Water

Impure water is associated with disease.

• Impure blood

If a skin diseases occurs they belives that it is due to the impure blood and eating leaves to make the blood pure.

2. Environmental sanitation

• Open field defecation
• No idea of laterine among some villages
• Some peoples belives that latrines are meant for city dwellers,where there is no field for defecation.
• Open defecation will leads todiseases.

3. Food habits

• Influenced by local conditions( Eg soil and climate),religious culture and beliefs
• Vegetarianism is given a place of honour in hindhu society.
• Fasting is common in muslims and hindus
• Alcoholic drinks are tabooed by muslims and high caste hindus.
• Eating and drinking from a common vesselsa are considered as a sign of brotherhood in muslims
• Some peoples do not eat unless they are taken bath and also wife should take food only after husband which can lead to ulcer formations in the stomach.

4. Mother and child health

• Some people believes that family is incomplete without a male child.
• Some foods (egg,meat,milk fish etc) are forbidden during pregnancy in some culture
• Some culture eoples believes that colustrum is poison and they will not allow the mother to feed the baby with breast for 3 days after delivery

5. Immunization

6. Personal hygiene

• Some peoples will noet use soap for bathing because they don't have an idea about the micro organisms
• Some of them are using neem stick instead of tooth paste and brush.Villagers use common cloths to wipe the body leads to cross infection
• No sterilization for the instruments using for shaving.
• Using purdah in muslims will cause defeciency of vitamin C
• Sleeping on a ground will leads to exposure to insects bites.
• Walking bare foot

Managing Cultural practices which donot conform to the principle of nursing

1. Consider the cultural practice of the person
2. Respect,undersand and work with differing cultural perceptions of effective or appropriate treatment.
3. Where needed arrange and appropriate interpreter
4. Make the patient to understand the need of care even if it is a sin in their culture too.Eg: some culture people believes that no medicine to be taken for chicken pox.
5. Educate the peoples regarding the importants and nutritive value of colustrum
6. Mae them aware about the immunization​​​​​​​