Contemporary Indigenous Health and Wellbeing -myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theContemporary Indigenous Health and Wellbeing for Beliefs. Answer: Nurses practising in Australia have the responsibility of bringing improvements in the health of the indigeous population. Nurses are to demonstrate cultural and clinical skills for making the care delivery of optimal quality. The subject of contemporary indigenous health and wellbeing aims to improve the knowledge of students about indigenous people for fostering understanding and respect. Exploring own attitudes, beliefs and understandings are essential for delivering evidence-based care to this population in a culturally respectful way. The present essay is a reflective piece of writing that discusses own attitude, beliefs, values in the context of the topic of contemporary indigenous health and wellbeing. The essay uses Gibbs model of reflection as the organising principle, outlined in Format 2, for bringing out the reflection. It aims to reflect on personal assumptions and how this has impacted on my decision making when interacting with Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander people before commencing this subject. A review is done on how the subject has changd the decision making process. In conclusion, a discussion would be put forward on how the change in decision making process would impact on my future nursing practice for Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander people. Prior to studying the subject of contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Islander Health, I developed the predisposition that bringing improvement in the health status of indigenous people is not a longstanding challenge. My knowledge around the subject was limited and the fact that there exists a strong relationship between colonisation and heath and wellbeing of these individuals remained unknown to me. Prior to this course, I was not aware of the fact that development in health and wellbeing can only be achieved through an understanding of the international context of trauma that this population faces. Individuals surviving the trauma and emotional turmoil are now progressing towards leading a well-adjusted life. However, I had the assumption that contemporary healthcare delivery for this population does not need to focus on effective communication and acknowledgement of the trauma they have gone through. I also was unaware of the fact that individuals relate to their identity by means of their culture and identity. The belief that I upheld till coming across the subject was that physical healing holds more importance for the individuals while the fact is that at the centre of health and wellbeing lies the concept of soul healing. I assumed that addressing depression, feelings, anxiety, seclusion and alienation does not hold much importance while caring for these individuals. My nursing practice prior to studying the subject was guided by the notion that addressing the health needs of the aboriginal population is sufficient for fostering better health and wellbeing outcomes. I was not in a position to understand and implement a care process wherein principles of social and cultural aspects are integrated. Healthcare services delivered by me was therefore not comprehensive in nature, as treatment was the sole concern for me, eliminating attributes of social and cultural considerations from the care. A person-centred approach was missing that did not take into account the cultural background of the individuals and the values, beliefs, preferences and emotional needs they have. Studying the subject on contemprary indigenous health and wellbeing was a life-changing process for my professional practice. Interacting with the lectures delivered in due course and the content learnt left a profound impact on how I deliver services for the indigenous population. The prime knowledge that I gained from the subject content was that indigenous people, in comparison to non-indigenous population experience far worse physical and emotional health. Access to healthcare is an issue for them due to a number of reasons, such as living in remote areas and low socio-economic status. A higher prevalence of health risk factors is also higher. From the service provision perspective, healthcare quality is influenced by cultural competency, communication and gaps in addressing varied health needs. The subject taught me in details that health for indigenous population is a holistic concept and it encompasses social, emotional, physical, cultural and spiritual well being of the individual. The point that a patient belonging to the community upholds a whole-of-life view regarding his own health was unknown to me prior to studying the subject. I came face-to-face with the truth that aboriginal population still retain the belief system of whole-of-life view though traditional beliefs and cultures have been challenged multiple times. If adequate health care is to be given to patients of this community, it is to be ensured that holistic approach is abided by. Each patient has his own preferences and beliefs, which are to be acknowledged while caring for them. The interaction with the subject content was successful in enlightening me with the multidimensional aspects of contemporary indigenous healthcare. My initial reaction was a sense of displeasure and dissatisfaction regarding the truth that the care approach promoted by me prior to this course was inappropriate. I felt that I had been unprofessional and dishonourable in the manner I used to deliver care to the patient belonging to this population. My decision making was not guided by specialised knowledge about the circumstances in which indigenous people live in. I felt the need of developing my skills and knowledge pertaining to healthcare for the indigenous population at an urgent basis. The positive aspect of my realisation and feelings was that I imbibed the need of bringing drastic changes in my practice and approaches. I further realised that continual learning is to be embedded in my practice so that I can base my practice on best available evidence concerning the subject. My reactions towards the subject, after gaining an in-depth knowledge of it, is consistent with that of other scholars under similar circumstances. According to Paradies (2016), nurses must acknowledge the need of upgrading the present level of knowledge when it comes to caring for a vulnerable population, such as the indigenous population of Australia. Nurses in a study conducted by Hunt et al. (2015) pointed out that they felt a need of changing their daily practice after coming to know that their assumptions about a certain population are wrong. As a healthcare professional, nurses must have the realisation that their predispositions and predilections regarding any certain population can be proved incorrect is research is done adequately. Nurses, when challenged with their level of knowledge, agreeing in fostering continual professional development through research. The experience pertaining to gaining knowledge on contemproary indigenous health and wellbeing was a valuable one. I learnt that caring for indigenous Australians implies that a holistic approach is to be integrated into the practice. Culture plays an important role in caring for this section of the Australian population. According to Giger (2016) aspects of culture are to be considered in clinical care for ensuring holistic care is provided at all levels. Kinship, responsibilities in the social context and family obligations are of more importance to indigenous people that own health needs (Axelsson et al., 2016). I learnt that my future practice must keep in mind that fact that these mentioned attributes contribute significantly to heath outcomes. Further, I also developed the knowledge that a culturally safe environment is to be created. For example, a healthcare setting might be a symbol of death for some individuals instead of healing. For such patients, it is important to culti vate the feeling that the purpose of healthcare settings is to provide care and healing process. I learnt that emotional stress is suffered by this population owing to a number of multidimensional factors. Concerns mainly relate to anxiety over community obligations, financial responsibilities, language barriers. Stressors might also include isolation, culture shock and lack of social support. Social support is a key factor that is to be addressed by all nurses caring for indigenous patients (Marmot 2017). Certain changes are to be brought in future in my nursing practice based on my learning from the subject. My beliefs and values have changed for the better as I now aim at delivering comprehensive care to indigenous patients. Earlier, I would not focus on establishing a relationship with the patients by acknowledging their cultural values. Going forward, I would ensure that I enquire about their cultural beliefs and values and work upon them while caring for the patient. I would make myself culturally capable enough to address the needs of the patients (Thompson et al. 2017). In conclusion, it is to be stated that the subject of contemporary indigenous health and wellbeing puts the focus on the exploration of indigenous perspectives of Australian history and the impact of colonisation on these people. Acknowledging the plight and trauma of these individuals, along with their intergenerational loss is important for caring for these individuals, and I would ensure that I do the same. Comprehending cultural and social implications of engaging with a strong relationship with these people is essential for my future nursing practice. My future nursing practice would be guided by the need of fostering humility in safe, collaborative and appreciative care service delivery. As per the code of professional conduct for nurses in Australia, a nurse is to respect the culture, ethnicity, beliefs and values of patients to whom care is being given. My future practice would be guided by this care standard. References Axelsson, P., Kukutai, T., Kippen, R., Reid, J., Varona, G., Fisher, M. and Smith, C., 2016. The field of Indigenous health and the role of colonisation and historyJournal of Population Research,33(1), pp.83-96. Giger, J.N., 2016.Transcultural Nursing-E-Book: Assessment and Intervention. Elsevier Health Sciences. Hunt, L., Ramjan, L., McDonald, G., Koch, J., Baird, D. and Salamonson, Y., 2015. Nursing students' perspectives of the health and healthcare issues of Australian Indigenous people.Nurse education today,35(3), pp.461-467. Marmot, M.G., 2017. Dignity, social investment and the Indigenous health gap.The Medical Journal of Australia,207(1), pp.20-21. Paradies, Y., 2016. Colonisation, racism and indigenous health.Journal of population research,33(1), pp.83-96. Thompson, G., Talley, N.J. and Kong, K.M., 2017. The health of Indigenous Australians.The Medical Journal of Australia,207(1), pp.19-20.