Worldviews v/s Christian Worldview.

Instructions: Reply to 2 of your peers below.  Must be 250 words or more.

For each thread, students must support their assertions with at least two scholarly citations in addition to the Bible in APA format. Each reply must incorporate at least one scholarly citation(s) in APA format. Any sources cited must have been published within the last five years. Acceptable sources include the textbook, the Bible, and scholarly articles.

Review your classmates’ threads, and respond through considering:

Classmates’ Tread 1.

I think the worldviews of my working environment are pretty in-line with the Christian worldview.  As nurses we focus on the nursing ethics of autonomy, beneficence, justice and nonmaleficence.  We are bound by the duty to give people their autonomy, do good for patients, provide fair and equal treatment, and do no harm (Nurse.org, 2021).  The Bible equally has much to say about every one of these things and our duties as humans and Christians to do good unto others.  Galatians 6:10 says, “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Open Bible, n.d.).  As a Labor and Delivery nurse our primary focus is on safe labor and delivery, and happy, healthy baby.  We attempt to accommodate patient requests and birthing plans as much as possible.  We have had doulas provide labor massages, we have had mothers praying through contractions to get through the pain, we have Chaplains conduct daily rounds to pray for laboring mothers and newborn babies.  When we have a fetal demise, our Chaplains also come up to conduct a prayer or baptism if the patient desires.  We are also welcome to pray with the patient if they desire it and are comfortable with it.  We try to accommodate all religious requests while also attempting to ensure our care is in the best and most possible accommodating treatment to ensure the patient has the best birthing experience.  All parents remember their child being born, and we all try to ensure that they have the best possible experience to remember.

I think where worldviews differ have to do with patient’s handling of their bodies and their babies.  We do have a lot of cases of patients that have a history of elective abortions.  We also have patients that decide to drink, smoke, do drugs or other toxins that affect their babies when they are pregnant and there is nothing we can do to stop them other than continually counsel them.  Cases like this breaks my heart and makes me mad that people would be so selfish to focus on their own desires and wants rather than the needs of their children.  Abortion is always a touchy and no-no subject in the workplace but the Bible has a lot to say about his unborn children.  Psalm 139: 13-14 says, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.  I pray you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well” (Bible Study Tools, n.d.).  Patients do not like to be told what to do with their bodies or how to take care of their children, even when the child is unborn, and especially after the baby is born.

I had an experience at work once where we recommended a newborn baby get the Vitamin K shot because babies do not have the capability to clot but Mom kept refusing.  She ended up dropping her baby onto the floor head first that night and we had to call the Pediatrician in to evaluate the baby and watch the baby very closely because the baby had a significant bruise on the head.  We kept urging the mother to allow us to give the baby Vitamin K to decrease the risk of bleeding into the brain but still the mother refused.  It is cases like this where tensions are high because we are trying to advocate for the baby and what is best for the baby but ultimately we have to do what is the mother’s wishes.

Classmates’ Tread 2.

Per McEwen and Wills (2019), the definition of worldview is a reference that a group uses to describe a particular reality or situation. According to Shelly and Miller (2006), the Christian worldview does utilize empirical science but focuses on nurturing, respect, healing, and the importance of prayer and spirituality. The Christian worldview of nursing involves utilizing an individualized holistic approach to caring for God’s creation. Nurses that follow the Christian worldview of nursing know that caring for another is not a natural occurrence, and by accepting God, nurses are able to see the “great value, dignity and worth” of every patient (Rieg, et al., 2018). Patients deserve to be treated with kindness and respect which allows for a therapeutic and healing environment.

A person’s belief system, religion, spirituality, and culture are all unique and help to make up different worldviews which can cause for conflict in healthcare. In my experience, conflicts between worldviews can occur when there is lack of understanding or bias of another’s worldview. The worldviews at my current place of employment revolves around science, research, evidence-based practice, caring, health promotion, and healing. However, there is the acknowledgement of different cultures, ethnicities, and spiritual beliefs but it is not a factor in the way they deliver healthcare. This is a conflict with my Christian worldview, because my worldview revolves around a holistic approach of caring, healing, science, and spirituality. One of my biggest conflicts is when money dictates how I care for my patients, and negatively impacts my patients. “Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous” (New King James Version [NKJV], 1982, Peter 3:8). This quote from the bible demonstrates how to act and care for an individual that is ill and in need of help, and the worldview of my current hospital does not follow along with this.

With the current situation in the hospitals due to the pandemic, I feel like I am unable to holistically care for my patients as I wish. This is because of staffing shortages, lack of resources, lack of support, and the high acuity and volume of patients is leading to tensions within the healthcare setting between the nursing staff, patients, and hospital administrators’ worldviews. The biggest tension causer I have experienced is when the patient and/or the physician disagree on a diagnosis or plan of care due to religious, spiritual, or cultural beliefs. I have found this to be the most frustrating and frequently occurring example of when worldviews collide. It can be frustrating and difficult to understand a patient’s decision regarding their treatment or lack thereof when it is based solely on a religious or cultural belief that is not understood by others. I had a patient that was given a new diagnosis of cancer while working on the cardiac unit. The patient refused any treatment and stated it was not necessary because she now knew what to pray for now and she believed that the cancer would go away by prayer. The physician, patient, and I each had different worldviews on this. This was a challenging situation because we as nurses are to respect the patient’s wishes and advocate for their wishes. However, my Christian worldview of a holistic approach of utilizing both science and spiritual beliefs was being tested. In the end, I had to respect my patients wishes and decision regarding their care. I provided as much education as I could to my patient to ensure she understood all the treatment options and resources available.