Reflection on Perceptions and Meaning of Health - Illness and Death

Question: Discuss about theReflection on Perceptions and Meaning of Health, Illness and Death. Answer: Introduction Maggies story of hope, recovery, and healing after being involved in a horrific accident explains the patients perspective on health and illness. She had sustained hip and spine injuries as well as brain and lung injuries. The first person to respond to the accident scene was a volunteer firefighter within the first hour of the occurrence which seemed to Susan as the greatest thing to happen to her that has contributed to her being alive. She was flown to a hospital where she stayed in a comma for a month. Afterward, she received great compassion and understanding not only from family members and friends but also from the health care providers and the general hospital staff (www.youtube.com, 2013). This contributed a great deal towards emotional, psychological and physical recovery amid despair, doubt of ever recovering, and fear. Maggies story brought me mixed feelings of being sorry a for what she had to go through and a sense of inspiration of the trust she had in health care providers. I think it is the responsibility of care providers always to provide encouragement and any support to enable the patient to recuperate. Since most patients have a self-care deficit, they in most instances feel that their situation might get worse. For this reason, the patient-nurse relationship should be given top priority as it directly influences the patients clinical experience. These feelings prompted me to think about the emotional impact nurses have on their patients. One of the primary roles of nurses is to allay anxiety in patients to promote physical recovery. In so doing, the nurses are expected to do more than the defined roles by creating a therapeutic relationship with the client. This can be encouraging to the patient as it also promotes patient dignity. As opposed to what I had always known to be true, patients have a greater trust in health care providers, and they should strive to maintain it by providing quality care. This care provided me an insight of what patients go through and what are their expectations from nurses in the situations that they are required to make hard choices about their conditions. It is imperative for nurses to approach each situation while considering its uniqueness and addressing holistic needs of the client, family, and relatives (Burton Ludwig, 2014). Moreover, the dependence of patients on the care providers differs from one to another, a tendency that is determined by pre-developed coping mechanisms. Recovery is a significant achievement for a patient and therefore nurses should show concern and interest to help the patient regain health. References Burton, M., Ludwig, L. J. M. (2014).Fundamentals of nursing care: Concepts, Connections skills. Philadelphia: Davis Company Www.youtube.com (2013, August 29).Maggies story of hope, recovery healingRetrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fb0FwrZH2q4