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Nursing Care Beyond the Urban Life and Into the Mystery

Fuentebella, Jemina E.

San Beda University College of Nursing

NCM 100: Theoretical Foundations in Nursing

Rudolf Cymorr Kirby P. Martinez, PhD, RN

October 18, 2020

Nursing Care Beyond the Urban Life and Into the Mystery

Nursing in the urban life, embracing new science and technologies, as well as new insights of
Philosophies and theories that blends with our lifestyle truly shows that our society is flourishing when it
comes to development. Many nurses aspire to work in big cities as they believe that there are more
opportunities that awaits them. In the urban life for nursing, people are accustomed with the usual
medical treatments like surgeries with the help of technology, intakes of pills and tablets, as well as
applying theories that has been taught in universities to nursing. They believe that with this, they will be
able to treat and care for patients efficiently. It is not difficult to be with the patients as the development
in nursing has been growing for decades. However, this is accepted in urban places, but there are areas
beyond the urban cities that are not very keen to accept help from those who lives in big cities that are
accustomed to development, since they are devoted to their preserved culture . They believe in the power
of herbal medicine and rituals that have been done from generations to generations. It may take a while
to convince those who are accustomed to their traditional culture to try new medical treatment as there
may be a chance that the nurses may be banished for not respecting them and what they believe in, which
is why nurses lead to try and negotiate what they could provide and what the people in the rural areas
could provide to be able to improve the well-being of the patients they encounter. This is a great
advantage when it comes to caring the patient, because there are illnesses that cannot be treated by
modern medicine, and there are illnesses that cannot be treated by traditional rituals and herbs alone.
The movie ‘Mumbaki’ allowed me to observe the versatility and commitment of nursing despite the
cultural difference through communication and mutual intention. It is also showing that although there
are illnesses that can truly be treated with modern care and health treatments, there are instances that
there are miraculous events in life in which not even science can explain, but we have to be open minded
about the idea of miracles in our lives for the wellness of others.

Despite the differences, it is evident that both the tribe and the nurses have communicated and
negotiated to use both ways of caring for the patients who are dealing with an epidemic which causes the
spread of the pneumonia disease. They’ve used their manpower in the hopes of stopping the on-going
epidemic in both tribes. With this, I’ve noticed Leininger’s care -based theory which focuses on
transcultural care. It has shown the process of cultural care accommodation or negotiation where
According to Fitzpatrick (2005), Leininger’s definition of cultural care accommodation or negotiation is to
adapt or have a meaningful communication with others for a beneficial and improved ou tcome for the
patient’s health. Which is essential, knowing that both sides will not give up on their beliefs and the ir
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practices, so the negotiation and communication of both parties will create a harmonious relationship
since as stated by Leininger (2002), Culturally-based care creates a more holistic and particularistic
approach between the nurse and the patient which improves communication and mutual understanding.
With this, the patients with a strong cultural belief and the nurses who have embraced the art and science
of modern nursing have a deeper relationship through being knowledgably aware of their differences and
similarities.

With modern nursing, the nurses have used medical technology in order to check up on their
patients in the tribe, which helps them understand what are the needs of each patient and to be aware
on how they can take care of them. Taking their vital signs with primary tools that a nurse must use, while
interviewing the patients one by one helps them identify the differences of each individual despite having
the same disease which is pneumonia. Because of this, Locsin’s Care -based theory is observed in which
the relationship of technology and nursing enhances not only the holistic care towards the patient, but
the unitary transformation of the patient. As mentioned by Locsin and Purnell (2015), Practicing nursing
with the enhancement of technology makes data gathering easier and more accurate which would help
in facilitating continuous knowing persons. With transcultural care and the enhancement of the care with
technology, it widens the perspective of the patients that would improve their lifestyle as well as open up
to those with different ideas other than their own and try to incorporate both knowledge to their
advantage.

My mother has few acquaintances who practices both herbal healing and rituals, and modern
medicine. I’ve seen an acquaintance of hers who spreads smoke around her patient’s body and keeps
hitting the patient’s body with leaves while speaking unfamiliar words. After the ritual, she mentions that
if the patient still does not feel better, she knows a doctor who could help. There were a lot of healers in
Samar, but at this day, only few are still practicing it since other healers have already died, but
nevertheless, it made me believe in both since I’ve been one of their patients before.

However, not everyone would eventually be open minded about the new knowledge nurses have
to offer despite negotiating to improve the well-being of the person. Just like the old Ifugao refused to
take the anti-biotic as he believes that their tribe’s ritual is the only thing that could save him, which makes
his relative concerned. Every individual is capable to think and act differently, which greatly affects others
as well since we may be individual beings, but how we value life may or may not always affect the lives of
others within the environment. To know that the old Ifugao refuses to take the antibiotic, he is increasing
the spread of the disease which will ruin the well-being of others. Rogers (1970) claimed that a person is
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a whole being who is capable of having his own integrity and build his own characteristics than may be
different from others which is more than his sum of parts, which continues to exchange energy with other
individual persons and that the exchange of energy is irreversible and unidirectionally evolves with time
and space. Which is why nurses must try and assist them on how they want to live their lives and what
belief they want to follow, since their actions will be led to a lot of possibilities, either be bad or good.
Because of this, other ways have been done for the Ifugao to take the medicine which is to dissolve the
medicine into the food that he ate, hence he felt a lot better. But then, not everyone h as the same fate
to feel better, as there are those who cannot fight the illness any longer. It brings out a negative impact
to the patient’s perspective and emotions, yet he may or may not be able to share it with others. We
cannot fully understand why people may or may not be able to build relationships since it depends on the
person if they will try and communicate. Parse (1996) have mentioned that we may see the patterns of
what they want to say or how they see reality, but we will never fully know just by observation alone,
which is why communication between two parties is essential. Once communication happens, it may be
possible for both individuals to enhance their relationship, which helps the process of the patient to
transcend. An example is where the tribe leader’s brother is in a serious condition, and yet he does not
speak of anything to anyone, except to his brother’s son. For him, nothing but his brother’s son to fulfill
his wish (which is to become a mumbaki and heal his soul), in which he did. Hence, their relationship
flourished with respect and care, as he waits for his time to come since his view of death has been shifted.
In a nurse’s perspective, this is a way to push the human-human relationship of both nurse and the patient
which would change the perspective of both about reality, which may add contentment in one’s life.

Other than the epidemic that’s been causing the lives of the other Ifugao people, the war between
both tribes has been causing an increase of people with injuries and death rates. The heated argument
between both tribes has sacrificed a lot of lives, including their tribe leader and his younger son. With this
health problem created by the sudden change in the environment and how it was solved, shows the
Boykin and Schoenhoffer’s care-based theory with an example that the tribe leader’s son helps both tribes
by buying and handing out medicine for all who has the disease despite the differences of both tribes.
With his action, the rival tribe was encouraged to believe that the other tribe wants peace and actually
cares for their tribe. Hence, they eventually felt the same and ended their war that killed off many Ifugao.
With this, it is evident that an individual always has the capability to care for others. Boykin and
Schoenhoffer (2001) stated that an individual cares from moment to moment, which means that they are
capable of caring by looking through the person as a whole , without dividing the person into different
parts by judging them. Because of this, it also shows the humanness of every individual. The ability to care
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is something that a person should always do as it is beneficial to different cultures and societies with
different perspective. Caring for someone despite the conflict of ideas helps in stopping a chaotic
environment, for the sake of everyone’s well-being.

Mentioning how medical treatments have been the answer to some of the health problems that
rituals and herbal medicines cannot handle, the movie has shown the reality that there are rare times
when it is the medical treatments that cannot heal the person. Just like how the tribe leader’s son was
suddenly healed after a ritual was done for him. His friends who have embraced modern science were
surprised and cannot believe their eyes that it is possible when in fact he was near death. There are events
in life that cannot be explained by evidence nor empirical explanation, but even so, it has at least been
beneficial for the patient. Which is why Watson (2007) has stated in her 10 caritas factors of caring, that
one should be open to mysteries and miracles. The outcomes of modern nursing to the patient may
sometimes fail, but as nurses, they should not give up on hope. Rather, they should be open to other
means to help the patient. Yes, it is not nursing that healed the patient, but the goal and the intention of
the nurse for the patient to be better is fulfilled.

I remember when I got sick when I was a kid after playing outside , and my fever kept getting worse
even if I consistently drink the prescribed medicine that was given to me. My mother’s friend suggested
that I should see a healer since I had my sickness after playing outside where there were lots of trees and
plants. Going through the process of the ritual, I was scared at first since I did not understand why there
was a figure showing up in a melted candle on a basin filled with water, but the healer said that I’ve
disturbed an entity while I was playing, but the entity was not that powerful so my mom and I shouldn’t
worry. She had continued with the ritual after explaining. The day after the ritual, I did not feel sick
anymore. Up until now, I have mixed emotions about that experience for I do not know if it was terrify ing
or fascinating, but I was glad that I felt better after that.

In urban places, there may be sufficient technologies that would help nurses to do their tasks
more efficiently and that the opportunities in big cities may help them be known, but what tru ly means
to do nursing is to go beyond one’s comfort zone (in which comfort zone could also be as being stuck in
an urban area), and see how different communities may be united in terms of nursing care and that it
widens one’s perspective about different individuals. With that, a nurse would soon realize that life itself
does not limit to what we’ve learned in universities nor to empirical evidences, but it still expands to what
seems impossible but isn’t. There will always be moments in life that no nurse can explain to how the
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person experienced a miracle, but that’s the interesting part of living, which brings a lot of meaning to
how one interprets life. Therefore, we must still go with it and flow with time and space.
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References

Boykin, A., & Schoenhofer, S.O. (2001). Nursing as Caring: A Model for Transforming practice. Jones &
Bartlett Learning.

Fitzpatrick, Joyce. (2005). Conceptual Models of Nursing; Analysis and Application. Pearson Education,
Inc, 4.

Leininger, M. (2002). Culture Care Theory: A Major Contribution to Advance Transcultural Nursing
Knowledge and Practices. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 13(3), 189–192.
doi:10.1177/10459602013003005

Locsin, R. & Purnell, M. (2015). The Universal Technological Domain: Refining the Theory of Technological
Competency as Caring in Nursing. International Journal for Human Caring .

Parse, R. R. (1996) The Human Becoming Theory: Challenges in Practice and Research. Nursing Science
Quarterly, 9(2), 56-57 doi:10.1177/089431849600900205

Rogers, M. E. (1970). An introduction to the theoretical basis of nursing. F. A. Davis.

Watson, J. (2007). Watson’s theory of human caring and subjective living experiences: Carative
factors/caritas processes as a disciplinary guide to the professional nursing practice. Texto
& Contexto-Enfermagem, 16(1), 129-135.