Medical-Surgical Units

Medical-Surgical Units Sample

Topic 4 DQ 1: Death and Dying

Nurses encounter situations that enhance their knowledge and make them better practitioners over time. Witnessing death, preparing patients to die, and relating with distressed patients and families are such situations. Death is usually an emotional and distressing issue whose interpretation and views vary depending on how a patient dies and their worldview. Since it is inevitable, healthcare practitioners should be able to handle it as professionally and ethically as possible.

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Death is not a new concept in medical-surgical units. I witness death often since a significant proportion of patients seeking care in these units are in critical condition. In most cases, patients need preparation for end-of-life too. This closeness to death has greatly shaped my view about it, including how people understand it, factors that influence people’s and patients’ attitudes, and how to handle patients depending on their beliefs. According to Hoehner (2020), death is not merely a physical phenomenon; it has meanings that vary across cultures and religions. Christians give death its ultimate meaning based on how they understand Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection. They see it as a step towards another life, implying that death is not an end. In other cases, death is perceived as separating the body and soul/spirit. The spirit is the soul’s faculty that connects people to God (Roberts, 2017). Such views from different patients and families have improved my understanding of death and how it should be handled. Medical-Surgical Units

Witnessing death often and coming across patients who understand it differently have made it easier for me to accept the fact of death. As a medical-surgical practitioner, I have accepted death as a possible outcome when caring for patients. I can also prepare patients and families emotionally and mentally where death seems a likely outcome. However, since most patients look for longevity and prevention of death as much as possible, I must strive to help them recover in all ways possible. For instance, medical practitioners must offer the appropriate medical care and respond to suffering with true compassion (Anderson, 2015). In this case, they should not opt for death unless they have exhausted all the options available to keep a person alive.

Medical-Surgical Units References

Anderson, R. (2015). Always care, never kill: How physician-assisted suicide endangers the weak, corrupts medicine, compromises the family, and violates human dignity and equality. The Heritage Foundation. https://www.heritage.org/health-care-reform/report/always-care-never-kill-how-physician-assisted-suicide-endangers-the-weak

Hoehner, P. J. (2020). Death, dying, and grief. Practicing Dignity. https://lc.gcumedia.com/phi413v/practicing-dignity-an-introduction-to-christian-values-and-decision-making-in-health-care/v1.1/#/chapter/4

Roberts II, A. H. (2017). The higher-brain concept of death: A Christian theological appraisal. Ethics & Medicine, 33(3), 177-131. https://search-proquest-com.lopes.idm.oclc.org/docview/1953801344/8E15777163CE4CF4PQ/9?accountid=7374

DQ 2: Sin of Suicide

Death is inevitable, but its causes and how different people and health practitioners understand it varies proportionately. From a medical perspective, health care professionals have an ethical and moral obligation to give patients the best care possible. However, death often happens when a person is prepared or accidentally. Suicide, physician-assisted termination of life, and natural death lead to the end of life. In any case, as presented in the course’s readings, opinions are divisive, and a universal position about the termination of life may never be obtained. Medical-Surgical Units

Regardless of how health care practitioners understand death and dying, the fundamental worldview differences cannot be overlooked. From a religious dimension (Christianity), euthanasia contravenes the biblical worldview that killing is wrong and God is solely responsible for death (Hoehner, 2020). Conversely, the secular worldview’s primary argument is that ending the sufferer’s life is a rational act of compassion. Anderson (2015) underlined that doctors’ mandate is to help patients to die a dignified death of natural causes. In this case, they should not assist in killing since their sole responsibility is to care by offering appropriate medical care and human presence.

I agree with the contrasting positions and the mandate given to health care professionals. Opposing opinions are inevitable due to differences in knowledge, religions, and cultures. Other sources of such divisive views include the opinion that assisted suicide undermines good pain management and that the patient’s autonomy should dominate decision-making (Renée Mirkes, 2017). In any case, nurses should help patients and families understand death and dying from a medical perspective. Pain management and other technologies may prolong pain instead of life. The quality of life matters more than its length. However, health care professionals’ decisions should be secondary to patients’ and families’ decisions.

Medical-Surgical Units References

Anderson, R. (2015). Always care, never kill: How physician-assisted suicide endangers the weak, corrupts medicine, compromises the family, and violates human dignity and equality. The Heritage Foundation. https://www.heritage.org/health-care-reform/report/always-care-never-kill-how-physician-assisted-suicide-endangers-the-weak

Hoehner, P. J. (2020). Death, dying, and grief. Practicing Dignity. https://lc.gcumedia.com/phi413v/practicing-dignity-an-introduction-to-christian-values-and-decision-making-in-health-care/v1.1/#/chapter/4

Renée Mirkes, O. S. F. (2017). Three end-of-life cases: resolving their moral dilemmas. Ethics & Medicine, 33(2), 107-120. https://search-proquest-com.lopes.idm.oclc.org/docview/1901683914/fulltextPDF/79642D3CA804C4FPQ/8?accountid=7374

Medical-Surgical Units

Topic 4 DQ 1
Points
5
How often do you engage with or witness death in your work? How has this experience or the lack of it shaped your view of death? Has it gotten easier or harder for you to accept the fact of death? As you explain, include your clinical specialty.
Topic 4 DQ 2
Points
5
Status
Reflect on the analysis of the sin of suicide and, thus, euthanasia from the topic readings. Do you agree? Why or why not? Refer to the lecture and topic readings in your response.
TOPIC READINGS BELOW AND OPTIONAL RESOURCES IN ORDER FILES
https://search-credoreference-com.lopes.idm.oclc.org/content/entry/galegnaah/euthanasia/0?institutionId=5865
https://lc.gcumedia.com/phi413v/practicing-dignity-an-introduction-to-christian-values-and-decision-making-in-health-care/v1.1/#/chapter/4
REFERENCES AND FORMATTING SHOULD BE APA 7 FORMATTING Medical-Surgical Units