Heritage Assessment of Families
In the contemporary medical world, heritage assessment is one of the best evidence practices that healthcare personnel must conduct if they are to ensure they comply with patient/family-centered care. That is for sure since different patients have unique cultural backgrounds, beliefs and values that medical professionals must understand if they are to meet the individual-specific cultural needs of the different patients. That said, a heritage assessment is a necessity for patient/family-centered care. In essence, this paper seeks to analyze a heritage assessment of three families with different cultures (Nigerian (own culture), Indian and Mexican). Central to the analysis is the evaluation of the usefulness of applying a heritage assessment, common health traditions and families’ subscription to these traditions and practices, and development ofa plan for health maintenance, health protection,and health restoration. By so doing, a new understanding of the value of heritage assessment of different families is inevitable.
Usefulness of Heritage Assessment
Heritage assessment is useful in the evaluation of needs of families in a variety of ways that are worth noting. A case in point of such usefulness is apparent in the notion that this tool will enable healthcare personnel to determine what is of the essence for the provision of cultural sensitive and respectful care. Such is the case given that the tool will identify the cultural preference of each individual and family, which healthcare professionals will strive to avail in their provision of care(Jarvis, 2011). With such efforts to satisfy patients’ cultural needs, maintenance of cultural sensitivity of patients’ is inevitable.
Notwithstanding, the heritage tool comes with the advantage of improving the quality of care provided to persons of different cultural grounds. Such an advantage is apparent in the sense that the heritage tool enables healthcare personnel to identify the most significant health beliefs of his/her patient and institute a plan of care sensitive to the established cultural needs(Jarvis, 2011). The ramification of this development of a cultural-sensitive plan of care is an increased level of patient satisfaction, which is an indicator of quality of care.
Similar Health Traditions and Families’ Subscription to the Traditions and Practices
Primarily, the interviewedthree families using the heritage assessment tool share some health traditions that are worth mention. From the interview, a common tradition noted among the interviewed families is reliance on prayer. Such reliance by the interviewed familiesaffirms the value of prayers in different cultures, which causes its people to believe in divine power of healing attainable from God. For instance, according to Strada, Homel, Tennstedt, Billings, and Portenoy, (2013), prayers are important health practices that many patients may even ask their medical professionals to pray with them while in the hospital. Besides, the interviewed three families also value highly their family members given that they prefer to have them around with them. That is for sure since all the three families asserted that they prefer keeping contact with their close relatives. Such an assertion depicts that family is of utmost importance to persons from these cultures. As such, the family needs must take precedence and they should take an active role when caring for the beloved ones.
Lastly, the families’ subscription to the common traditions and practices is also worth noting. In this case, the families’ subscription to the tradition is evident in the sense that all the interviewed families recognize the need of having family members around them and therefore keep contact with them and they call on them to come to USA to stay with them. Notwithstanding, they continuously pray, which depicts their ascription to this practice.
Plan for Health Maintenance, Health Protection, and Health Restoration
Based on the heritage assessment of the three families, an individualized plan of health maintenance, health protection and health restoration is necessary. That is for sure since it will provide a roadmap of what one can do to ensure the wellbeing of individuals from the different cultures assessed. The plan for health maintenance, health protection and health restoration for the three families is as captured in the table below.
| Families | Health Maintenance | Health protection | Health Restoration |
| Nigerian | Maintenance of good health for these persons is only possible by believing and doing God’s will.
Health maintenance can also occur through good dietary practices that entails consuming ethnic foods |
Protection of one’s health is possible through praying for good health. Notwithstanding, health protection services such as vaccination is also vital for such protection. | Central to the recovery of a sick person are prayers, in which these persons seek for forgiveness of their sin in anticipation of healing.
Moreover, the ill persons seekmedical services is complimentary to praying. Also, involvement of family in the plan of care is necessary given the instrumental role played this entity |
| Mexican | Health maintenance for this family is possible by encouraging the individuals to consume the ethnic foods that are healthy | Health protection is achievable by encouraging the individuals to seek health protection services such as vaccination | Health restoration for this patient can be assured by emphasizing on the need to pray and involvement of family in the plan of care given the instrumental role played this entity |
| Indian | According to Anderson, (2012) maintenance of good health in the Indian culture entails good dietary practices and exercises such as yoga and meditation. | Diet is one of the protectors of health of persons from this culture. That is for sure because pregnant mothers after childbirth are forbidden from consuming certain foods such as heavy diet foods like beans for the prevention of ill health | The Indians rely on herbs and roots to restore health. However, if the health worsens, individuals seek medical services.
Also, involvement of family in the plan of care is necessary given the instrumental role played this entity |
Conclusion
Concisely, this paper aimed at analyzing a heritage assessment of three families with different cultures to its practical details. The discussion has achieved this objective by evaluating the usefulness of applying a heritage assessment, common health traditions and families’ subscription to these traditions and practices, and development ofa plan for health maintenance, health protection,and health restoration. An implication drawn from this analysis is the need for conducting heritage assessment of every patient for the establishment of the ascribed beliefs, values and traditions that may have an impact on the health status. With such a consideration, the healthcare professionals are in pole position to provide cultural-sensitive care, an integral component of patient/family-centered care. However, in the absence of such a consideration, the patients/families’ cultural needsare likely to remain unmet for the unforeseeable future.
References
Anderson, L. L. (2012). Cultural Competence in Nursing. Nurse Together, empowerment, encouragement, opportunities. Retrieved from, http://www.nursetogether.com, On October 29, 2017
Jarvis, C., (2011).Physical Examination and Health Assessment. 6th Edition. Saunders.
Strada, E. A., Homel, P., Tennstedt, S., Billings, J. A., & Portenoy, R. K. (2013). Spiritual well-being in patients with advanced heart and lung disease. Palliative and Supportive Care, 11(03), 205-213.
