The flower standing alone symbolizes the abandonment people feel when they go to hospital. I chose this picture because many times we forget that ending up in hospital can be physically draining, perhaps due to surgery…but also emotionally draining on the patient who has to go through the hospitalisation process on their own. Patients in the health system feel alone when they are not being supported by their loved ones. It causes them to become discouraged and depressed and this negatively affects their recovery. These are usually the types of patients whom refuse any sort of treatment because they feel as if no one cares for them so why take horrible tasting medications and why endure the pains of needles? They do not see the bigger picture of the health system supporting their health, instead they see how much emotional support they lack. Lack of emotional support leads to depression. Services which these people can access are support groups and also psychologists who are able to offer the necessary support and mental treatment. They can also contact the South African Depression and Anxiety Group. Depressed people who require physiotherapy usually experience it as supportive and this is aside from the fact that it physically helps people feel better. When you are physically healthy, you become mentally healthy. Patients usually feel at ease with their physiotherapist, this causes them to open up about their emotions. Although physios are not counsellors, they do offer understanding ears and can offer advice as well as referrals. Physios can help patients who are experiencing any pain, muscle related problems and the list goes on. When there is no more pain, it automatically results in a boost in their mood and thus relieving depression.

Academic Literature

Research on loneliness has been hampered by its strong association with depression, they frequently co-occur and share common origins (Weeks, Michela, Peplau, & Bragg, 1980). In psychiatry, a patient refusing treatment is generally considered to be evidence of an impaired capacity to make decisions about lifesaving treatment. These are usually patients whom are depressed, it is seen as a reasonable response to a medical illness which can be due to the link with feeling alone (Sullivan & Youngner, 1994). Loneliness can be a problem for elderly people who are hospitalized, children move away and spouses and friends are too frail to visit them. Loneliness is a medical issue, and according to studies there is a link between feeling alone and poor health as well as early death. Hospitals are thus designing studies to find out if volunteer companions improve medical outcomes or improves the patients’ hospital experience (Jaffe, 2016). Reduction of muscular-tonic syndrome and especially of pain syndrome through the developed treatment leads to a significant improvement in the emotional state of patients, this is proof that there is improvement that occurs with physiotherapy (Chukhraev, Vladimirov, Zukow, Chukhraiyeva, & Levkovskaya, 2017).

References

Chukhraev, N., Vladimirov, A., Zukow, W., Chukhraiyeva, O., & Levkovskaya, V. (2017). Combined physiotherapy of anxiety and depression disorders in dorsopathy patients. Journal of Physical Education and Sport, 414-417.

Jaffe, I. (2016, November 21). Health Companions Can Ease Isolation For Older People. Retrieved  29 April, 2019, from npr: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/11/21/500222611/hospital-companions-ease-isolation-for-older-patients

Sullivan, M. D., & Youngner, S. J. (1994). Depression, competence, and the right to refuse lifesaving medical treatment. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 971-978.

Weeks, D. G., Michela, J. L., Peplau, L. A., & Bragg, M. E. (1980). Relation between loneliness and depression: A structural equation analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1238-1244.