The Observations in Miami City While Working in a Healthcare Facility

NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.

NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.

Table of Contents

Abstract
Introduction
Background
Avoidable observations
Recommendations
Conclusion
References

Abstract

Healthcare is an important aspect in society. Society thrives if there are proper healthcare systems and practices implemented (Larivière-Bastien, 2011). This means healthcare practitioners and professionals are a vital tool in the healthcare industry. This study aims to discuss the issues arising from healthcare matters in my community. The study will discuss observations made while working in a healthcare facility in Miami City. The examples of these observations will critically show the problems of poor healthcare services and attitudes in the community. Stereotyping, racism, unfair treatment, and discrimination are part of the injustices facing some of the patients in this community. Recommendations on suitable methods to curb and reform the problem are also discussed as a solution to the practices. Professionalism, ethical procedures and fair treatment are prescribed as suitable methods to improve health services in the community. The study verifies that enhanced health practices and services will help improve the health situation in the community.

Introduction

Healthcare and medical facilities are places where people with disabilities, minority groups, and refugees encounter diverse unethical and social obstacles. This study aims to discuss the problems faced by these groups in healthcare institutions within Miami. Miami, being a multicultural city, is inhabited by a variety of people, mainly immigrants from Cuba and Latin America. Practicing healthcare in Miami has exposed me to many unethical and unfair practices that lead to poor healthcare service delivery in the city. The study’s focus is on avoidable unethical practices.

Background

While working in a healthcare facility in Miami, I noticed that the population lacked proper family planning information. Many of the women often had unplanned pregnancies. They had little knowledge about contraception and prevention of unwanted pregnancies. Many of the cases I handled confirmed that most of the people self-prescribed contraception without professional medical advice. The fertility rates were high, and little had been done to educate couples on the importance of family planning. The healthcare system was poor since it lacked experienced personnel and workforce. This meant that the patients did not receive adequate treatment and healthcare services. They also suffered social challenges, stereotyping, and mistreatment by healthcare practitioners. The violations made were against religion, race, and culture.

Avoidable observations

The community around Miami hosts a majority of unemployed, under-educated, and generally low income-earning people. Most of them have part-time jobs and earn very little pay. Crime rates are soaring, and drug addiction is a norm. One day, a fellow nurse assuming that a patient was a drug addict failed to offer counseling advice to a person. The patient visiting the facility was of Latin American decent. She was replacing her monthly contraception patch. The nurse having stereotyped her as a junkie or a sex worker did not offer her any counseling advice on the best methods of prevention of pregnancies or STDs. In her case, she assumed the woman would not have taken any piece of advice since she was a junkie/sex worker. This sort of stereotyping could have been avoided if all the healthcare personnel were trained on ethics and professionalism. The nurse failed to understand that the under-educated population would also benefit from counseling sessions if offered a chance. Many of such women do not get a decent education and rely on traditional methods of family planning that are not effective. The resulting effect of this stereotyping is poor healthcare. The general population also suffers as a result since they do not benefit from the healthcare services as well (Nelson, 2013)

Unfair treatment, racism, and discrimination are rampant in Miami. Many healthcare professionals judge people based on their race, religion, culture, or mental ability. I have observed that people with criminal records were not treated the same as those with clean records. They had to wait longer in queues or had a hard time getting prescriptions. Those who had poor insurance plans also suffered more than those with better healthcare plans did. Patients with disabilities also faced unfairness. If they arrived unaccompanied, they would have to wait longer before anyone assisted them. The personnel were not ready to assist a person with disabilities, which affected the attitudes of patients towards Medicare. People with criminal records suffered unjust treatment and had a hard time seeking for treatment. The observations made also indicated that some of the staff members were not adequately trained to offer specialized healthcare treatment. This resulted in treating the patients unfairly. At the waiting bays, certain people are left waiting for hours while others simply walk in and are served by the nurses.

Recommendations

The healthcare system needs to be reformed in order to offer better services to be able to curb diseases, fight illnesses, and provide better healthcare. The healthcare system in Miami desperately needs professionals to work with the patients. Some of the patients in the hospital complained that the practitioners were not skilled enough to offer them quality treatment. Thorough training needs to be offered to healthcare practitioners on how to handle equipment to facilitate better care. Ethics and fair treatment policies should be implemented in hospitals to help those in the minority groups and affected parties get fair medical assistance. The fact that a nurse could fail to offer important counseling advice to a patient because of stereotyping presents the need to instill professionalism on hospital staff to prevent ignorance and baseless assumptions.

Conclusion

Healthcare systems need to be sensitive on ethical issues. The perceptions and assumptions made by healthcare practitioners only worsen health issues in the world. Studies conducted in the U.S have indicated that discrimination, unfair, and unjust treatment in healthcare facilities were a leading vice in poor healthcare provision (Jacobsen, 2014). The healthcare institution needs to revise its roles pertaining service delivery to offer patients better care regardless their disease, race, culture or age.

References

Jacobsen, K. H. (2008). Introduction to Global Health. Sudbury: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Larivière-Bastien, D., Majnemer, A., Shevell, M., & Racine, E. (2011). Perspectives of Adolescents and Young Adults with Cerebral Palsy on the Ethical and Social Challenges Encountered in Healthcare Services. Narrative Inquiry in Bioethics, 1(1), 43-54.

Nelson, S. C., Hackman, H. W. (2013). Race matters: Perceptions of race and racism in a sickle cell center. Pediatric Blood & Cancer, 60(3), 451-454.

Click Here To Order Now!