Reflection on Personal Perceptions of Health, Illness, Dying, Death

This reflection paper examines personal perceptions and meanings associated with health, illness, dying, and death, grounded in a case study of a young woman, Ms. L, who experienced healthcare disparities due to her immigration status and lack of insurance. The paper explores the emotional and ethical dimensions of end-of-life care, highlighting the importance of palliative care and the impact of a patient's death on those involved. The author reflects on the case, emphasizing the need for healthcare providers to respect patient needs and offer comprehensive support, including emotional, spiritual, and physical care. The paper underscores the significance of early palliative care involvement and building healthy relationships between practitioners, patients, and their families to facilitate informed decision-making and ease emotional burdens during difficult times. The author concludes by advocating for patient-centered care and comprehensive support for patients and their families during end-of-life stages.

Running head: REFLECT ON THE PERSONAL PERCEPTIONS
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Reflect On The Personal Perceptions And Meaning Of Health, Illness, Dying And Death
First name Last name
Institution

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This reflection paper is grounded on an article with a title “End-of-Life Health Care
Disparity” A case of MS. L a young woman 18 years old diagnosed with acute lymphocytic
leukemia and she was living in Southeastern United States. The article talks of painful
experiences which she underwent through as a result of her immigration status, with no
insurance coverage which made her not to acquire medical care. Ms. L was very ill when she
was being admitted to the medical intensive care unit and she was unconscious.
During her case presentation in the ICU, every healthcare provider could tell with just a
few words that Ms. L was in a tough condition which is referred to as “slow code,” where her
life was being kept alive by life support machines. Ms. L was in multi-organ failure and cardiac
arrest was on the horizon because she was decompensating. Her family members could not be
contacted because they were in her home country and the only representative was a young man
named Mr. K who was her medical interpreter. Mr. K has informed the situation which her
partner was in and she would not survive; he cried and wailed that God will save her life. He
was asked if he was comfortable for medical practitioners to do everything in order to save her
life and he agreed. Ms. L died the following day after receiving some rounds of chest
compressions.
I failed to comprehend why a case like this could come up and be considered as ethical in
healthcare. It was indictable that Ms. L was denied medical treatment only because she was not
in a position to cater for her healthcare. She was later offered care when she was in her last
minutes of life. Both the process of birth and death can be compared because both contain
emotional events. The end-life needs of a person should be provided, medical providers offer
clinical support for the patient and family members also have a great role in the process.

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Death of a close person causes emotional and psychological disturbances to an individual
(Barnato et al., 2012). In this case scenario, I would probably express myself emotionally in
terms of denial, anger, despair, and confusion for the loss of Ms. L. As a human being it is
appropriate and normal to feel sad when someone whom you have been taking care of dies. Ms.
L death caused a very stressful situation for his partner. A loss of loved one or even a friend is a
very stressful and it causes a major emotional and physical crisis to people who are involved.
The care of dying patients if often provided by nurses and no matter how many years of
experiences and preparations to avoid and minimize the difficulties which are linked with death
and dying there will always be difficulties to those who are involved. I believe that it is of benefit
when the palliative support care is provided to patients earlier during the disease process.
The care provided to those individuals who are terminally ill and are dying involves
understanding various concepts of physical, spiritual, psychological and emotional caregiving
approaches. The healthcare providers should have consulted the palliative care team so that Ms.
L can start receiving supportive care instead of life-sustaining care treatment. As a healthcare
professional it is crucial to ensure that patients benefit from palliative care support in a situation,
for example, the case of Ms. L who was not provided with any of those needs which are
required when the person is dying. Mr. K would have understood the situation of his partner
which would have made him make an informed decision and eased his emotional burden. It is
vital for palliative practitioners to build a healthy relationship explain the most important values
to both the patient and family members so that they can come up with goals which fit in
palliative care needs of a dying patient (Carter & Wocial, 2012).
In conclusion, various factors determine the quality of care which is offered to those
patients who are at the end of life. Palliative care or support care team should get involved earlier

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during the disease process where the patients and family members can be able to receive
emotional, spiritual and physical support over a long period of time. As a healthcare provider, it
is vital to ensure that those concepts of death are applied at their last stages of life where they
require full attention from everyone who is around them. I would suggest that healthcare
providers should ensure that they respect and offer patients everything that they need.

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References
Baggs, J.G., Schmitt M.H., Prendergast, T.J., Norton S.A., Sellers, C.R., Quinn, J.R., & Press,
N. (2012). Who is attending? Endof-life decision making in the intensive care unit. Journal
of Palliative Medicine, 15(1), 56-62. Retrieved from:
https://www.nursingeconomics.net/necfiles/news/End-Of-Life_Care_Kimball.pdf
Carter, B.S., & Wocial, L.D. (2012). Ethics and palliative care: Which consultant and when? The
American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care, 29(2), 146-150