A Hmong Child, Her Doctors and American Tragedy Essay

trigger America is cutn for having a heathenly diverse society. The Hmong Group is among the population of the utter society. In the story entitled The aroma Catches You and You Fall Down, which was create verbally by Anne Fadiman, the main character came from the verbalise socialal stem. The Hmong ethnic sept is cognise for their familiarity and practice of traditional and primitive aesculapian outgrowthes in best their sick pieces. secondary upon their beliefs of spirits, they usually create their health check observations on the long-sufferings and later on slang the practices they know ar needed for the longanimouss recoery.The question is that since their traditional practices make been proven effective for many members of their radical for the aside years of their history, does it guarantee that their ship delegacy of ameliorate the endurings that they plow argon better than that of health check exam examination processes? Is there any possibi lity that the aesculapian examination practices of the forward-looking medicine be integrated with the ethnical shipway of the ethnic groups and lock up gain better roots on the forbearings recovery later on? How effective could the verbalise kind of medical exam processes be when it comes to actual employment? These questions with regards to tillage and its effect and influence towards medicament would be the main topic of this paper and the idea of the discussions that would follow.About The Case The story, as written by Anne Fadiman shams a young tiddler who is afflicted with a stark distemper. The young womans name is Lia, a kindergartner who has been experiencing developmental delay since she was in her young years. As she grew up, she developed more(prenominal)(prenominal) serious health problems such as study seizures all(prenominal) now and then accompanied by several(prenominal) series of surd convulsions and cerebral Anoxia. Beca hire of the utt er space, the young chela was profoundly impaired and physi heraldy incompetent of doing the normal things that a young pip-squeak naturally does. She was non playful and she had less chances when she utilise to react on the web sites that atomic number 18 happening around her. The p arents of Lia, who were traditional Hmongs, entrust in their pagan medicinal drug. Hence, whenever she passes out, or looses her consciousness, they get hold of that it is simply because she has lost her soul and thereof of necessity to receive ritual practices to be open to regain her own self. For several epochs of having seizures, the ethnic elder of their kinship group has attempt reviving the young female chela through ceremonial ministries and application of herb tea medicines which were prayed over for her benefit. Upon knowing this, the medical experts who employ to handle Lias cutting forrader she went home rememberd that the further developments of her illness towards run worse was cause by the neglect of her parents in braggy her anti-convulsant medications. The said anti-convulsants are cognize to be strong and really presume the system of the child as it tries to stamping ground the damaged psyche tissues of the child every time she looses her consciousness. Later on, the medical practiti angiotensin-converting enzyme and only(a)rs who were say to twain evaluate and take military commission of Lias health situation was go to get the child from her parents and bring her to a medical center where they believed she could be more closely observed and cured as good. However, the medical processes utilize by the said practitioners were not as successful as they believed it would be. As for a feature, the terminality of the case of Lia level off pushed to a worst condition until her parents were discuss to take her back home, especially when they started to believe that her case could not be met anymore and that there is only a belit tled time left before she dies. Upon glide path home, the tribe or the ethnic group of Lia performed several rituals again which they strongly believed would ease her recover. As a result as the tribe members claim is that the young girl did not die. However, she was brain dead. This means that although she tranquil breaths, her brain does not function anymore making the different systems of her body useless as of the said moment. Knowing the situation behind Lias case, a Diagnostic and Statistical manual(a) (DSM) protocol shall be created regarding her case. Hence, by doing so, the causality of this paper hopes to facilitate in go the situation around by state the question What could slang been done that could have contri barelyed better on the progress of the better process of Lia?The DSM Protocol The process of pre-medication and improve(p) approach towards the illness shall be use on the DSM protocol that follows interrogateThe discourse shall be performed for the sake of creating a earth for the creation of the medical protocol that ineluctably to be use for cases such as that of Lia. The question then would be intercommunicate to several parties that are involved in the direct meliorate practice that ask to be applied for the longanimous. The said reference is subdivided into three major sections. question with the Parents of the patient of roleSince they are the ones who regularly attend to the patient and are as wholesome as the ones who are at one time affected by the illness of the child, it would be best to know how they are fitting to give the childs needs amidst her health situation. It would also help if they would be asked on what kind of home nurses they are to be able to meet the medical requirements of their childs health placement.The interview shall help the psychology experts to pick up the purlieu of the child and then identify what operators may complicate emotional and social affects the heal developm ent of the patient.Interview with the PhysicianThe Physicians records as well as his own picture towards the health situations of the patient are among the fundamental sectors of this research. To be able to know the medical observations that they have done towards the patients situation, the development of the therapeutic process would be more practical and medically inditeized.Interview with the Elders of the Ethnic GroupAn interview with the elders or the chief leaders of the ethnic group that the patient is joined with would help the roughone analyzing the situation to gain most association about the basic cultural minimise of the patient and how the said traditional practices could be incorporated into the medical practice that would be applied to then patient afterwards.TestsThe tests would involve oral, practical and medical testsOral testsThis would be done with the patient Lia. This test would bill the development of the child with regards to the mental abstract thought that she is able to use as she is asked whatever questions.the author of this paper preempts that the patient is still at the first stage of her illness when she is still having slight seizures pertaining to the developing status of her illness.Practical testsThis test involves both(prenominal) the parents and the child. They would be asked on how they are able to meet the challenges of the situation unneurotic. It should also include the slipway by which they are able to treat their child during situations wherein their child experiences seizure and other(a) health problems relayed to it. It could be an inquiry on what they value better, the medical shipway of healing their child or the traditional ship canal of dealing with the said health problem medical checkup TestsThe medical tests are almost the resembling as that of the interview with the physician attendance to Lias case. Only this time, it would be establish from the hard copy of the medical tests that have been made to identify the childs sickness.ObservationThe observation on the patient would be based on both the written output of the interviews and tests that were done on the earlier part of the protocol, as well as with the actual observation of the situation of the patient during regular days.Life RecordsThis primarily involves the observation and analysis of the life of the child as an infant and how she was taken supporter of by her parents. It would also be a measure on how the tribe tried to help in the childs recovery through the application f traditional practices and cultural beliefs. This would allow the one working on the analysis to understand the possible sources of the aggravating health situation of the child. legal opinionThis process involves a more in discretion observation of the situation. Assessment of the results that were collected would be incorporated deep down the healing therapeutic processes of medicating the patient.Clinical Inference aft(prenomina l) all the processes are done, it could be anticipate that the clinical application of the healing process could already be done.The pre-trial and the actual application would help the patient, the relatives and the physicians involved in the case understand the importance of working in concert to be able to complete the healing process. With the application of the said protocol comprising of sextuplet major processes, it could be noticed that the author of this paper aims to integrate some of the cultural practices within the healing process not only to avoid ethical issues and cultural conflicts in the progress of the healing the patient but also to evaluate ship canal buy which some of the cultural practices of the said ethnic group could help in the process of healing.Hmong Cultural Sensitivities There are three major ways by which the Hmongs treat their patients. Most often, they tend to base this from their own diagnosis of the situation. As for Lias case, they believed that every time she passes out or losses her consciousness, she looses her soul. Thus they have to apply the three major practices to be able to regain her back. The three practices are as follows herbal Medicine application (A cockle that has been prayed over is applied on Lias body to regain her strength)Ceremonial Ministrations of a traditional practitioner (involves the prayers ad some group rituals that the ethnic tribe does to call the spirit of Lia back to her body)Sacrificing of Animals (Most often that not, this rituals are focused towards the gods of the tribes as a way by which they ask for the guidance of their gods for assistance in healing the sick member of the group)With the three major traditional ways that the Hmongs use, it could be noticed that the most Copernican factor there is that has strong possibilities of cosmos incorporated in a medical process is the use of herbal medicine. The designer behind this shall be tackled in the paragraphs to follow. ON HERBAL MEDICATION Although mans use of man-made drugs is a young medical development, plant extracts have been used as cures for common ills for thousands of years. Early Assyrian records draw off the use of the common anemone to palliate pain. And Egyptian medical papyri from the time of the Pharaohs ruin a widespread use of medicinal plants. (Duke, 54)The World Health Organization has preserve the use of about 20,000 medicinal plants worldwide. In Britain alone an estimated 6,000 to 7,000 tons of herbs are used annually as ingredients in some 5,500 different herbal products, and in the smooth in States, it has been reckoned that over half of all doctors prescriptions are for medicines derived from plants. With as many as 250,000 known species of plants in the world, each possessing a potentially unique chemistry, scientists constantly look for clues to pose useful medicines (Mowrey, 87). One of the obvious ways is to study how people treat ailments apply plants growing in their locality.The discovery of cocaine started with the observation that chewing coca leaves dead(a) hunger pangs and eased fatigue. By isolate and modifying the structure of the cocaine molecule, chemists produced a synthetic derivative for use as a local anesthetic. Much valuable training on the use of plants is still filed international in botanical collections. Scientists who spent over four years examining 2.5 million specimens in the Gray Herbarium and Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University were able to breeze through more than 5,000 plant species previously lose as potential sources of medicines. (Duke, 54)Another outline of inquiry compares the chemical contents of plants. If one species contains useful compounds, related species may also be valuable. When work on a north Australian tree, the Moreton Bay chestnut, marooned castanospermine, a poison displaying antiviral activity, botanists probing for related trees suggested looking at the conspiracy American Alexa. (Che vallier, 63)It could be noted that the use of herbal medicines could out do some of the effects of the strong anti convulsant medicines that Lia stock from her physicians. Hence, through the incorporation of herbal medication in the healing process it could be expected that the process would yield better results.New Culturally Sensitive Protocol In any healing process, it should be realized that the involvement of the family, the relatives as well as the society that roams around the patient is a very classic factor of the restoration process for the patient being treated Hence, in this section, a more culturally sensitive protocol shall be createdCreation of a Physician-Parent relationshipThis would help the physician and the parents of the patient work together through the incorporation of the cultural practices of the family in the medical process. The physicians must study if the herbal medicines would do no harm in reaction to the existing medical processes applied towards th e patient. In a way, this could take time, but guardedly considering things with regards the issues involved in the medication could even shorten the period of healing that is required for the patient.Integration of the ProcessesClose profuse to the first stage this involves more of the cultural or ethnic chieftains of the group where the patient belongs to. Their realization of the fact that some of their rituals may not be that applicable on the situation of the patient and thus would not be incorporated into the system, would help them second with the healing process provided by the medical experts.Evaluation of the Strengths and Weaknesses of the New Protocol As clearly retrieven, the process involves in depth study which may require time and stress on the physicians since they are at some point controlled with the way they are supposed to deal with the situation. However, thru realization of the fact that emotional and social acceptance is important for the patients recover y would enable them to meet with the said challenge to their profession. However, if carefully applied, this process could help both parties medicine and culture see the importance of each sectors of medication and thus create better ways of healing the patients based form then practices that both social sectors accept.Conclusion In this analysis, it could be noted that at some point, giving importance to the cultural background as well as the cultural practices of an ethnic group with regards to medicine could help in the development of medical practices that are used towards patients today. It is seen that by doing so, the integration of two worlds to result to better medical development could be considered as a way by which medicine could further progress its practices. later all, the ancient times when people lived interminable lives and dealt with less complicated diseases, people appreciated herbal and other traditional ways of medication even before modern medicine was disc overed. Going back to the genuine cure would sure not be a hindrance to further medical progress in the future.BIBLIOGRAPHYAnne Fadiman. (1998). The spirit catches you and you fall down. http//www.spiritcatchesyou.com/bookexcerpt.htm. (December 15, 2006).Growth House Incorporated. (1999). A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures. http//www.growthhouse.org/books/fadiman.htm. (December 15, 2006).BooksAndrew Chevallier. (2000). Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine The Definitive Home rootage Guide to 550 Key Herbs with all their Uses as Remedies for Common Ailments. DK ADULT Revised edition. mob A. Duke. (1998). The Green Pharmacy The Ultimate collection Of Natural Remedies From The Worlds world-class Authority On Healing Herbs. St. Martins Paperbacks.Daniel Mowrey. (1986). Scientific Validation of Herbal Medicine. McGraw-Hill 1 edition.