Cultural Diveristy - Muslim Culture and Practices

This paper will cover the Muslim culture and practices and discuss three ways in which they can potentially conflict with hospital policy. The World Almanac reports that Muslims in the United States number approximately five-hundred two hundred twenty thousand. The community that our hospital serves makes up for a very small portion of the Muslim population. For this reason, it is very important that we deliver the utmost competent and cultural care. Some Muslim culture and practices interfere with common medical practices in the hospital setting as well as conflict with hospital policy. As a Registered Nurse working in the emergency room we often try to utilize cultural awareness to fit the need of the patient. However, sometimes very difficult to do, we come close as possible while trying to avoid conflict with treatment or hospital policy. Personal interviews and reading cultural diverse books will be used in learning more about the Muslim culture to increase the cultural need and awareness to promote comfort and continuity of care.

We will ask that the nurses and doctors working in the emergency department have an in-service on Muslim culture to better provide cultural care. Secondly, Muslims refrain from eating any kind of pork, pork like substances, or medication that is derived from pork. For that matter we ask that a more cultural efficient diet be taken into account instead of focusing on medical diets offered in the hospital setting. Upon making these kinds of changes the dietary department will be greatly affected if they had to become culturally competent in all cultural diverse foods. We will attempt to gain cultural awareness and erase any stereotypes that are conceived about Muslims and their cultural practices. We will suggest the proper changes to be made to better fit the needs of a culture that is often misunderstood. We hope to provide the necessary changes and accommodations warranted.

Three Muslim women patients were asked to participate in an interview after visiting the emergency room. The main purpose of this interview was to allow them to voice their primary concerns regarding the treatment they were receiving from a cultural aspect. The other question that we proposed to the Muslim women was that as Muslim women being treated in the emergency room, were their cultural and religious beliefs taken into account while receiving treatment in the emergency room? Also, what if any changes could the hospital change to further fit their culture and needs?

The area where the hospital is provides emergency care to approximately two hundred sixty five patients a day according to the billing clerk at the hospital. So therefore it is unlikely that we will be able to provide much of the pampering required to fit the needs of the Muslim patient in the emergency room. The hospital policy is that a patient is seen in seven minutes upon arrival to the hospital and blood is drawn within ten minutes once the patient hits the bed. In one instance the mother of two daughters reported to the emergency room and a mount of test needed to be done and the mother was uncertain about doing so because she had not consulted with her husband, so therefore a delay in treatment was called by the attending physician because the woman had to wait on her husband to arrive to give consent for such tests that were needed, thus resulting in conflict with hospital policy. A second incident it is the hospital policy that if a patients dies in the emergency treatment room the body is to be moved immediately to a family room which stays there for one hour. The conflict comes in where someone from the family is being very hostile and belligerent when trying to take the body to the morgue because they are waiting for their other grieving family members.

Upon conducting the first interview with a young twenty five year old that was accompanied by her eldest sister. We will refer to the twenty five year old as Mrs. S Mohammad. Mrs. Mohammad arrived to the emergency with increase vaginal bleeding and she was four months pregnant. Upon arrival Mrs. Mohammad thought that the only thing that needed to be done was a simple ultra sound to see if the baby was still alive and this should be done by a female doctor. This would be a perfect opportunity for us to both interview and educate Mrs. Mohammad on what the expectations are from her and the medical services that were needed for her treatment. As we begin to explain that a pelvic exam was warranted and is very necessary Mrs. Mohammad grew