healthcare
-
Notes on “Shattering Culture: American Medicine Responds to Cultural Diversity” by Mary-Jo DelVecchio Good (Editor) et al.
The world is changing, the people are moving, the demographics are being reshaped, especially in the US where there are so many immigrants. This book presents a collection of works that describe how are health-care institutions responding to this changing demographics, including issues within the institutional policies and the personal human dilemmas in serving the diverse and constantly changing group of patients. Although it is clear that cultural diversity often covaries with racial and ethnic classifications, we must remember that cultural diversity can exist within ethnic groups as well, and other dimensions of culture (such as those deriving from class background or education). Through various examples we are shown that…
-
Notes on “Medicine, Religion and Health” by Koenig
In his book “Medicine, Religion and Health” Koenig raises several important questions about the role of spirituality in the healthcare settings. First of all, he address the problem of definition of the term spirituality. As it is shown, due to the fact that spirituality in itself is a very private matter, it can be described differently by every person. Koenig brings up several definitions of different researchers and eventually offers his own. In his opinion, spirituality should be linked to religion even though it does not necessarily imply religious belief. While there may be different opinions on the precise definition of spirituality, Koenig points out that in the clinical settings…
-
Steps to Becoming a Chaplain
Chaplaincy training programs can be found at various colleges, universities, and seminaries. Many of these programs are master’s degree programs or form part of graduate level education. Courses may include counseling theory, theology and officiating religious ceremonies. Some organizations require prospective chaplains to have between two and four years of religious leadership experience, and some require ordination. Even though many chaplains are ordained ministers, one does not have to be ordained to work as a chaplain, but he or she has to have an endorsement or commission from a faith group. An endorsement may be obtained after satisfying specific education and training objectives outlined by an authority in that faith…