Pain Management Strategies: Addressing Muslim Patients' Beliefs

This essay provides a medical and religious analysis of pain management for Muslim patients. It discusses the use of opioid medications like tramadol, balancing the need for pain relief with Islamic beliefs regarding intoxicants and maintaining consciousness. The essay highlights the importance of cultural sensitivity and establishing a rapport with patients to understand their concerns and provide appropriate care. It emphasizes that patients have the right to refuse medication to preserve their spiritual integrity, but also need to be fully informed about their options and potential risks. The Crescent of Care Nursing Model is suggested as a framework for nurses to provide holistic care, addressing psychosocial, clinical, cultural, spiritual, and interpersonal needs of Muslim patients. Ultimately, the essay advocates for culturally sensitive healthcare that respects patient autonomy while ensuring their well-being.

Running head: PAIN AND MUSLIM PATIENT 1
Pain and Muslim Patient
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliations

PAIN AND MUSLIM PATIENT 2
Pain and Muslim Patient
Medical Analysis
Opioids medication is primarily prescribed or recommended for treating both
severe and moderate pain. It is important to note that they function by getting attached
to the receptors on the nerves of the brain; therefore, increasing the amount of
stimulation it undertakes to feel the threshold pain (Wallace et al., 2012) as well as
reducing the pain perception. Besides, tramadol is one of the opioid analgesics which
consider a benign alternative in comparison to other opioids medications. According
to ACMD recommends reclassifying tramadol (2013), tramadol has got low potential
for addiction compared to morphine. Nonetheless, according to Allegaert, Rochette
and Veyckemans (2011), the addiction of tramadol can happen when used for an
extended period, for example, for more than one month.
Religion Analysis
In the Islamic religion, each patient or individual has got the right or liberty to
look for treatment in case of pain and not like the spiritual advantages of enduring
pain (Van den braden & broeckaert, 2010). Conversely, the use of high pain doses or
medications which are believed to have an instantaneous addictive impact on a patient
is not allowed. The use of pain drugs such as opioids and which impact the sensorium
is exactingly forbidden in the Islamic religion. Al-Shahri and Al-Kenaizan (2009),
state that even though Islamic law prohibits the use of intoxicants like alcohol and
drugs, necessity allows breaking the law especially if there is no alternative at hand.
Furthermore, in according to the Islamic perceptions, alleviation of individual
suffering is deemed to be so righteous. Contrariwise, it is significantly imperative to
maintain the degree of consciousness or cognizance close to normal (Al-Shahri and

PAIN AND MUSLIM PATIENT 3
Al-Kenaizan, 2009). The Islamic jurisprudence outline that necessity allows breaking
or going against the law in order to safeguard the physical health or well-being of a
patient in extreme or severe situations. Similarly, it helps in preserving the spiritual
integrity and veracity of the patients as Muslim believers. The analysis of the Islamic
religion in regards to management of pain provides health care providers such as
nurses with the contextual to understand any Muslim patient. The nurses should use
the Crescent of Care Nursing Model which is derived or obtained from an
ethnographic research of Arab Muslim health care meanings and beliefs of Arab
Muslim nurses. The model guides the nurses and other health care providers to assess,
evaluate and meet the holistic care required by the Muslims including psychosocial,
clinical, cultural, spiritual as well as interpersonal needs (Lovering et al., 2012).
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is my sincere opinion that a patient has got the right to deny
pain medications so that he or she can preserve his or her spiritual integrity as a
member of the Islamic religion. However, I realized that most patients lack
information in regards to pain medications more so tramadol and the duration required
for becoming addicted with the drug. Correspondingly, the nurses need to establish a
rapport or good relationship with the patients to understand why a patient maybe
negating the medication. The rapport will enable the burses to understand a patient as
a Muslim and to try to offer the patient with more information regarding the
medication or to find other alternatives to cure the pain.
Notably, in regards to the interview which I conducted with a nurse, I
established that a proportion of the Muslim patients refuse or negate to take opioids
because of addiction, therefore, prefer to bearing the pain. Conversely, other Muslim

PAIN AND MUSLIM PATIENT 4
patients can be addicted to the opioids because of the severity of the pain or due to
elongated period of medication. However, it is important to note that a patient may
not be addicted to tramadol particularly if he or she took it either once or twice. As
such nurses have to be culturally sensitive and learn how to care for diverse patients
from various religious backgrounds to provide holistic care. Besides, as a health care
provider, it is significant to know that any patient has got the right to be provided with
full information concerning his or her situation, care plan as well as medications.

PAIN AND MUSLIM PATIENT 5
References
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of tramadol during infancy: ontogeny, pharmacogenetics and elimination
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Al-Shahri and Al-Kenaizan (2009), Islamic law on drugs used for pain management;
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