Social Implications of Medical Issues - Desklib

Running head: SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS OF MEDICAL ISSUES
Social Implications of Medical Issues
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

1
SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS OF MEDICAL ISSUES
Table of Contents
Question 1:.......................................................................................................................................2
Question 2:.......................................................................................................................................3
Question 3:.......................................................................................................................................4
Question 4:.......................................................................................................................................6
Question 5:.......................................................................................................................................7
Question 6:.......................................................................................................................................8
Question 7:.......................................................................................................................................9
References:....................................................................................................................................10

2
SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS OF MEDICAL ISSUES
Question 1:
End stage cancer has been reported to have a deleterious and disengaging impact of the
living conditions and the will to live among the patients with terminal disease. The impact of
impending death and the perceived distress of the family members of patients after the death is
known to give rise a varied number of challenges and restrictions in success of the palliative care
that has been planned for the patient (Harvey, 2016). The will to live among the patients for
these terminal diseases is often very less, hence, the nature of the palliative care can have a
significant impact on the last few days or months for a terminally ill patient. The palliative care
practice in USA has changed drastically in the last couple of decades, it has evolved significantly
from the singular focus on the end of life care which is based entirely on the comfort of the
patients to a completely broad and multifaceted interdisciplinary specialty approach which can
potentially address the each and every holistic care needs of the terminally patient and their
family members as well (Littlewood, 2014).
The practice scenario of the palliative care in the USA is now conceptualized as patient
centered and family oriented care. The present western medicine technique of palliative care
especially in the USA attempts to optimize the quality of life of the terminally ill patients by the
means of anticipating, managing and preventing sufferings encountered. The primary focus of
the palliative care practice is on pain management and the related distressing symptoms through
pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment methods. Along with the traditional means
of medical aid, complementary or alternative medication (CAM) technique is also increasingly
being used for terminally ill patients, especially for pain management. The beneficial impact of
CAM has been very successful in improving the living experience of the patients along with

3
SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS OF MEDICAL ISSUES
providing much needed relief from the exhaustive pharmacological treatment procedure
(Morrison, 2013). On a more elaborative note, for the young adults that are suffering from cancer
or similar terminal illness, providing quality comprehensive care is often very difficult. In such
cases, the implementation of CAM in conjunction with traditional therapies have been reported
to be more effective in enhancing the quality of life and experience of the patients. For the
elderly populations as well, the impact of the using both conventional westernized treatment
methods in conjecture with the holistic alternative treatment methods is expected to yield better
results in both patient satisfaction levels and in care outcome (Wilson et al., 2014).
Question 2:
Culturally diverse communities often experience various cultural and traditional
restrictions when receiving curative care delivery with respect to palliative care given to the
patients. There are various struggles such as communication around death and dying, anger
regarding the impending death, family conflict, family centered care giving during the end of life
stage, cultural differences, the concept of informed consent, and time flexibility. While the
traditional treatment measures are exhaustive and pain inducing, the complementary or
alternative medication techniques are also often associated with extensive activities such as
acupuncture, yoga, and meditation, which might lead to cultural complications (Corin, 2017).
In this case, if Ella decided to continue with CAM mode of treatment, the reaction in her
family is expected to be content and supportive of the decisions taken as the CAM treatment
modes are more acquainted with the traditional healing techniques. However, if Ella is coerced
into the mainstream medicine techniques, the family members might feel extremely agitated and
angry for their cultural safety being violated and their loved family member being forced into a
particular treatment method. Next, If Ella’s husband insisted his family traditions to be followed,