Download Caregiving in Different Religions and Cultures

CAREGIVING IN
DIFFERENT RELIGIONS
AND CULTURES
By
Amira G. Eltaliawi, MD
Consultant of Geriatrics and Gerentology
Introduction
• For thousands of years care giving
for the elderly has been an integral
part of different religions and
traditions all over the world. Various
religious establishments have given
care for elderly with dementia and
many of today’s formal care giving
institutions have developed from
these establishments.
• Religion and different traditions also,
ever since the dawn of man, have
inspired caregivers for the elderly
and motivated them as well as
helped relieve their psychological
and spiritual stress.
Objectives
• The aim of this review is to explore the value of care
giving in different religions and traditions with a special
focus on religions of the region (Judaism, Christianity and
Islam).
• The perspective of three different caregivers; one Muslim,
one Christian and one Jewish will be presented.
Questions
• How have your religious values affected your care-giving
•
•
•
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of a dementia patient?
Can religion be a burden in care-giving?
Autonomy vs. beneficence?
Special religious laws vs. modern laws?
End of life issues; how has religion influenced decisions
and affected coping in this phase?
Judaism
"Honor your father and your mother “(Exodus 20:12)
• Historically speaking, the Jewish community has tended to
demonstrate a care for the aged that is often taken to be
exemplary translated into a pattern of institutions caring for
their needs.
• Jewish sources mandate that children tend personally for their
parents' physical and psychological needs. Maimonides adds
one caveat referred to in the article below: Those who are
extremely disturbed by their parents' dementia may arrange to
have someone else care for their parent.
• Care is instructed to carried out in a proper attitude :"A man
may feed his father on fattened chickens and inherit Hell [as his
reward], and another may put his father to work in a mill and
inherit Paradise.
• “Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor.” Leviticus
19:16 . Jewish law requires every sick Jew to seek medical
treatment.
Christianity
Yes, honoring aged parents includes protecting them and providing for
them materially when they are not in a position to care for themselves.
( John 19:25-27)
• Paul says: “their first responsibility is to show godliness at
home and repay their parents by taking care of them.”
Timothy 5:3–4
• Churches have historically speaking had great role in the
development of nursing homes.
• Life is a gift from God,
“we are the Lord’s” (14:8)
Islam
"Show gratitude to Me and to thy parents: to Me is (thy
final) Goal. (Luqman 31: 14)
• In Islam, parents' rights are the most
venerable rights after those of God.
• The mother ranks before the father in Islam as far as their
children are concerned. Prophet Muhammad (peace be
upon him) said: "Paradise lies under the feet of the
mother.“
• Retirement homes giving basic maintenance needs for
the aged and infirm who lacked a family to care for them
were present in Muslim Spain
• For Muslims, life is sacred because God is its origin and
its destiny. Death does not happen except by God’s
permission, as dictated in the Qur’an
How have your religious values affected
your care-giving of a dementia patient?
“ Jewish families are some of the closest knit and
bonded families. Judaism inspires its followers to go the
extra mile to ensure giving their elderly the care they
need. They themselves would actually take leave of their
jobs, get to more detailed planning to ensure elderly get
the care they deserve.
• “Serving is a big part of Christian teachings; worship is
not just about going to church to pray. Jesus taught us to
show our faith thru deeds. Another inspiration was the
decision of love in my life”.
•
•
“I believe that when we do good to others, God repays
us in our life and I have personally sensed this. Religion
has helped me in caregiving because I smile to my
patients like Prophet Mohamed ordered us and this
makes patients more responsive . Also prayers have
helped to calm my patients at the end of life”.
Can religion be a burden in care-giving?
“Yes, religion can bring on guilt and I see it all the time
and increases caregiver stress. Also because of having
to make certain religious observances like observing
Sabbath.”
•
“Personally I had no guilt feeling although sometimes
people have a sense of resentment; why me? I don’t
believe it is wrong to seek help and I had that in mind
when I started my project. I was aware of this burden”.
•
“I personally had no guilt because religion only
commands us to do what is in our means. I dream and
strive to give all what I think is due to my
patients; but when I can’t , I am not stressed”.
•
Autonomy vs. Beneficence
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•
•
“In Jewish tradition, elderly have a very sacred level of
respect and obedience to them is valued and that doesn’t
change even with dementia. A mother could be 25%
competent but she will have her way”.
“I believe that we were born free and we
inform our parents and let them
take the decisions”.
“I believe that the benefit of the patients health
supersedes autonomy, but I would try to convince my
patient rather than force it upon her”.
Modern law vs. Religious laws
•
The Talmud laid down the rule for Jews in all the ages
of exile: dino d'malkuto dino, “the law of the land is our
law.” But still Jews tend to honor their religious laws when
they can like Sabbath and speedy burial of their dead.
•
“We have no specific laws and I haven’t faced any
problems with Egyptian laws”.
•
“I find no discrepancy between my vision of
Sharia law and and Egyptian laws”.
End of life issues
“Belief in Judaism gives caregivers a certain acceptance of
death, and I have seen it with a lot of Jewish families; they
accept what’s coming on to them. As to end of life decisions;
Judaism doesn’t force us to live every single minute if we are at
the end of life. DNR orders and refusal of tube feeding and
other options have not been a problem with the families I’ve
worked with”.
• “I know that when a person dies he is joined with his creator
and thus the day of death is day of happiness. This acceptance
of death has led me choose hospice care for my mother. As to
end of life decisions, I am not aware of any Christian teachings
that guide these decisions”.
•
“Submission to fate of coarse alleviates the pain of seeing a
loved one dying. Also knowing that death is not a bad thing nor
is it the end has helped me cope with seeing a patient in the
end of life and difficult decisions”.
•
Buddhism
• In South Asia,
caregiving
responsibilities are
framed by the concept of
Karma, the Buddhistbelief that good acts will
lead to good
consequences.
• Caregiving for elder is
accepted as an integral
task of a family
member.
African Traditions
• Traditionally in Africa, the
main source of support has
been the household and
family, supplemented in
many cases by other informal
mechanisms, such as kinship
networks and mutual aid.
• The elders provided care to the
children who in turn provided
care to them in their old age,
hence the Shona saying, “Look
after it and it will look after
you”.
Conclusions
Religious values can play a role in both formal and informal
care giving as well as provide spiritual and psychological
support and much needed sense of reward for care givers.
Recommendations
• Exploration of ways to enhance faith as a support to
caregivers.
• Studies need to be done to explore the role of faith in
caregiving.
THANK YOU