Answer the following questions about a patient's spiritual needs in light of the Christian
worldview.
1. In 200-250 words, respond to the following: Should the physician allow Mike to
continue making decisions that seem to him to be irrational and harmful to James,
or would that mean a disrespect of a patient's autonomy? Explain your rationale.
According to this author, the physician’s role in this situation is very important. The parents
need to understand the clinical situation as clearly as possible. This is the time when the
physician should talk to Mike about that the decisions he is making are actually causing more
harm to James even though this is not his intention. He needs to reinforce to Mike about the
severity of James’s condition and complications if he doesn’t get kidney transplant soon. By
doing this, the physician is not disrespecting patient’s autonomy. James is a minor and his
parents have the right to make decisions for him. The physician had respected Mike’s decision at
first when he decided to take James to faith healing instead of the option of temporary dialysis.
But now, when James did not get better with faith healing and father brought patient back to the
doctor, the doctor is doing his job by explaining the severity of the condition and consequences
if not treated on time. The physician should reassure Mike that he is also thinking of James’ well-
being as his doctor and wants to prevent any more harm to him by treating him on time. This is
the time when maybe involving a chaplain or priest from parent’s faith tradition would be
helpful who can explain to parents that they are not abandoning the teachings of their faith in
God by giving James medical treatment.
The physician should also keep Mike’s faith, religion and cultural commitment in mind and
talk to him without disrespecting his belief in God. He should tell Mike that maybe James’
coming to the hospital is God’s will and that is how He wants him to get better. At this stage of
disease, James needs both, medical treatment and God’s blessing, to get better. Mike should
continue to have faith in God and continue to pray for James while he gets the necessary medical
treatment.
Several factors influence people’s decision-making. It could be past experiences, cognitive
biases, age, religion, belief, culture etc. Doctors should respect personal religious and cultural
commitments, taking account of their significance for treatment and care preferences. Conflicts
between clinical judgments and patient’s beliefs should be approached sensitively. As
healthcare professionals, we are obligated to report situations to proper authorities like child
protective services whenever we see that parent’s decisions or actions can cause danger of death
or disability to a child. It is even a tougher decision to report when the parents are not
intentionally wanting to cause any harm to their child but doing so in name of religion and faith.
“In rare situations of imminent danger to the child, it is ethically justified for health care
professionals to proceed with life-saving procedures over parental objections as the report is
being made”(Orr, 2003).
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worldview.
1. In 200-250 words, respond to the following: Should the physician allow Mike to
continue making decisions that seem to him to be irrational and harmful to James,
or would that mean a disrespect of a patient's autonomy? Explain your rationale.
According to this author, the physician’s role in this situation is very important. The parents
need to understand the clinical situation as clearly as possible. This is the time when the
physician should talk to Mike about that the decisions he is making are actually causing more
harm to James even though this is not his intention. He needs to reinforce to Mike about the
severity of James’s condition and complications if he doesn’t get kidney transplant soon. By
doing this, the physician is not disrespecting patient’s autonomy. James is a minor and his
parents have the right to make decisions for him. The physician had respected Mike’s decision at
first when he decided to take James to faith healing instead of the option of temporary dialysis.
But now, when James did not get better with faith healing and father brought patient back to the
doctor, the doctor is doing his job by explaining the severity of the condition and consequences
if not treated on time. The physician should reassure Mike that he is also thinking of James’ well-
being as his doctor and wants to prevent any more harm to him by treating him on time. This is
the time when maybe involving a chaplain or priest from parent’s faith tradition would be
helpful who can explain to parents that they are not abandoning the teachings of their faith in
God by giving James medical treatment.
The physician should also keep Mike’s faith, religion and cultural commitment in mind and
talk to him without disrespecting his belief in God. He should tell Mike that maybe James’
coming to the hospital is God’s will and that is how He wants him to get better. At this stage of
disease, James needs both, medical treatment and God’s blessing, to get better. Mike should
continue to have faith in God and continue to pray for James while he gets the necessary medical
treatment.
Several factors influence people’s decision-making. It could be past experiences, cognitive
biases, age, religion, belief, culture etc. Doctors should respect personal religious and cultural
commitments, taking account of their significance for treatment and care preferences. Conflicts
between clinical judgments and patient’s beliefs should be approached sensitively. As
healthcare professionals, we are obligated to report situations to proper authorities like child
protective services whenever we see that parent’s decisions or actions can cause danger of death
or disability to a child. It is even a tougher decision to report when the parents are not
intentionally wanting to cause any harm to their child but doing so in name of religion and faith.
“In rare situations of imminent danger to the child, it is ethically justified for health care
professionals to proceed with life-saving procedures over parental objections as the report is
being made”(Orr, 2003).
This study source was downloaded by 100000843213987 from CourseHero.com on 10-30-2022 15:39:07 GMT -05:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/55574580/case-study-week-5docx/
