The right to health is fundamental to the physical and mental health of each individual. To reveal the importance of right to health care, it is emphasised in the South African constitution in three sections. In one of the three sections, it is emphasised that detained or prisoned individuals have a right to health care and medical services. Health professionals are in no stand to infer their feelings or personal conflicts in a clinical setting or allow their feelings to determine the quality of care they are going to provide a patient.
The incidence in discussion transpired at the clinical placement I am currently placed at, where a nurse has been constantly brutally rude to a patient due to an incidence that occurred to her. The admitted patient was assaulted by the community after a failed attempt to mugg someone and stabbed them to death because they tried to defend themselves. This entire scenario was very disheartening for the nurse because she explains how she was also mugged and stabbed because she did not have the amount of money the robbers wanted. She added that it was the most closest near death experience she has ever experienced and that seeing someone who did the same things and consequently killed the victim getting a second chance to life is not fair.
In essence, health professionals are not allowed to infer their personal beliefs, feelings or project judgement to any patient based on their intrinsic factors or issues. Every patient has a right to health care and respect in any health facility irregardless of their social background. Patient X called me out and told me how nurse X has been constantly hostile towards him, and how this entire treatment is detrimental to his health because it stresses him out. He further said, if he could go home he would escape at the hospital and go recover at home but he is unable to do that because he cannot walk and people want him dead back home. In my attempt to try tone down his agitation, he said, “you are the only person that can help me.” For a spare of a moment I froze in confusion, and I asked how I am fitting to help him and he replied saying if I could get him a wheelchair and then we pretend that he is going to smoke outside he can escape and reach his brother who resides around Cape Town to get him. Of course, I made it clear to the patient that he is admitted because he requires intensive care which he will not get at home and that I will never counter the
The trouble and effort he was highly determined to go through for the sake of leaving the hospital plainly conveyed the seriousness of the ill treatment that he alleges he is getting. I, therefore, took it upon myself to have a word with the nurse after the conversation I had with the patient. The nurse was very plain with me and explained why she behaved the way she did, however she also mentioned that she know she should not be behaving the way she does, but she cannot help it because the patient is the one of the 3 guys that actually mugged and stabbed her in the streets of Khayelitsha.
This stimulated a lot of conflicting thoughts for me as well because I realised how deep the situation was; but I still maintained that we should always act professional at a work environment and that we should always administer the best of treatment to every patient that’s at our disposal because it is their rightful right to receive the highest medical care possible.
3 thoughts on “Health professional’s impotence to discern personal feelings and professional conduct”
Hi there Cebisa,
Thank you for sharing your writing piece about the right to health. I am going to follow the rubric guidelines for feedback.
Context: The information and feelings described in your writing really makes an immense contribution to the topic. However, I feel that by adding references will help strengthen your argument. Consider going to more depth regarding moral principles which all humans have and how the right to health (in this specific patient’s case), should not be influenced by that.
Discussion: The topic relates to the work that we have covered in our ethical lectures. I think you linked this topic well to your personal clinical experience and how, in that sense, it has been problematic to you. You proposed good examples; however, I feel that you can include stronger arguments by adding referenced statements. This will validate what you are stating in your writing piece. Perhaps go into depth about right to health and how morally, it can cause conflict within an individual.
Engagement: By describing the nurse and the patient’s feelings, helped me to understand what the writing piece was about. I feel that you can perhaps add more meaningful questions and ideas in the writing piece. Therefore, rather go into more detail at the beginning of the writing piece, really explaining and analysing what the right to health really means, how it relates to detained patients, how it makes the medical staff feel, how it influences them (ethically and morally) and last but not least, how it influences you.
Writing Style: Consider working on the introduction to ensure that your reader is intrigued from the beginning of the writing piece. Further, to enhance the flowing of the text, go into more depth about a certain topic in one paragraph only and then link the concepts together in the conclusion. For example: introduction, right to health, how it links to detained patients, how this influences the hospital staff (ethically and morally), explain your scenario, how it affected the nurse, how it affected the patient, how it affected you and your treatment and conclude by tying everything back together. Also, consider adding a title as it tells the reader what your writing piece is about.
I have just corrected the grammar mistake in paragraph 1: “Health professionals are in no position to allow their feelings or personal conflicts, to determine the quality of care they are going to provide a patient.”
References: No references or in-text references used.
Time/Length: Handed in on time however, the writing piece is relatively short.
Information Literacy: Consider adding a picture for the reader as it may help to trigger thoughts about the writing piece and intrigue them to read it. This will tell the reader what your writing piece is abut and intrigue them to read your piece.
I enjoyed reading this; I too had a similar experience as this and felt it hard to deal with since I was only a student.
Well done Cebisa!
– Jana x
I think it is a good piece as it shows a different situation that we as physiotherapist have to deal with sometimes. we have to remember that we should always try to act professional and do the best for the patient, even if we have some conflicted feelings. and that there is two sides to a story.
Paragraph 2, mug instead of mugg. it was the closest near death experience
Paragraph 3, regardless, ends in a middle of a sentence, just check to complete the sentence to complete the paragraph.
remember to add references, maybe about professionalism, or feelings at a workplace
Hi Cebisa
Thank you for your submission! Although this is a very interesting topic, I am sorry that you had to experience this but I am confident that it will only make you stronger as a health professional! I am going to use the rubric provided to give you the necessary feedback on your piece.
Content:
I think the topic of patients rights to health care is relevant to our ethics module as it is an ongoing ethical issue which patients face on a daily basis. I really liked how you were able to link your emotions as well as your clinical experiences to the topic. I think your description of your experience is strong and thought provoking. However, I think adding a heading/subject name to your piece will assist in getting the reader to get an idea of what your piece is about and will help in getting your point across. Furthermore, have you thought about adding photo’s to your piece? I think the usage of images will help to increase the depth of your writing.
Argument:
I like how you started your writing piece with statements on the right to health care as it helps to provide the reader with an idea of what your argument is about. However, have you considered adding more information about the specific rights that patients have re: health care? I think adding what patients should be getting in terms of healthcare services before explaining how they are mistreated will provide the reader with a baseline of what is expected and will further increase the strength of your argument.
References:
Have you considered adding references to your piece? I think attaching references to your literature will help you to back up your statements. In addition, make sure there is a reference list at the end of your piece.
Writing:
I found a few grammatical errors and will highlight what I found as well as how I suggest you change it
Paragraph 2: “where a nurse has been constantly brutally rude to a patient” should be “where a nurse has constantly been brutally rude..”
Paragraph 3: “respect in any health facility irregardless of their social..” should be “respect in any health facility regardless of their social..”
Paragraph 5: “..realised how deep the situation was; but I still maintained..” should be “.. realised how deep the situation was. However, I still maintained..”
Besides these grammatical errors, I think your paragraphs flowed really well and I thought that it was well written piece as a whole!
Good luck for your final submission!
Raadiyah x