Question

A nurse in the United States volunteers to join a medical mission to teach local health care workers how to provide palliative care services in India. Discuss what aspects of palliative care will be most culturally acceptable, and what barriers the nurse will face in teaching and providing care. ( Answer in Approx 250 words).

Answer 1

The aspects of palliative care that will be most culturally acceptable in the Indian context will be;

influenced by; the position occupied by the patient, along with various dimensions, such as class, religion, caste, community, language, gender etc. Cultural variations in attitudes and values of the patients should be taken into consideration by the individuals making crucial medical decisions. It is therefore important for medical, paramedical and mental health professionals to be cognizant of these factors so as to provide effective and satisfying end-of-life care to patients. Asian patients the family members and physicians may share decisional duties. The barriers the nurse will face in teaching and providing care include; lack of the knowledge of the culture of the people and lack of an understanding of the language i.e communication barrier.