Culture and Ethnicity Essay

I would respond to the client’s requests by doing as she has asked. This is because her requests do not make her condition worse or delay its improvement. Intake of fluid actually increases clearance of the airway in her respiratory condition. Nursing care provided to her would be adapted to fit in with her culture as long as her requests are within reasonable limits and thy do not endanger her health. (Potter, Perry and Heath, 1995) Her requests are an indication of the health traditions of her heritage. They show what kind of treatment she expects and her beliefs about health care. Culture is a set of beliefs, traditions and believes that are unique to a group of people and usually they are handed down and hardly ever change with time. These beliefs affect every aspect of life from daily living o ceremonies and include health too (Potter et al, 1995). The requests of the Chinese woman represent the beliefs she has concerning treatment of her illness. Her requests are based on the Yin-Yang Chinese concept of balance. Chinese base their food on choices on the condition of an individual, age and also the general characteristics of the individual. Some conditions are designated Yin (cold) conditions and therefore require Yang foods (hot). In this case, her respiratory condition is one of them (a Yin condition) that require a Yang food, (the warm water). (Feng, 2002). In accordance with Chinese culture, cold drinks should be avoided as they add an extra burden to the digestive system; hence her requests for warm water. (www. dhansanjivani. org/) According to the Chinese, one should eat according to the nature of their conditions. The nature of the condition is determined by observation, according to her, (the Chinese woman) the condition she has is a Yin condition and she therefore needs to eat Yang foods. Milk and bread are neutral foods and the salad is a Yin food, the foods served to her are not relevant to her condition. The belief that the digestive system should not be overburdened, may also have led her to refusing the food. Most Chinese prefer foods that are easy to digest when they are ill such as soups and the lady may have considered the turkey a burden to her digestive system. (www. dhyansanjivani. org). REFERENCES Chinese Food Therapy, retrieved from www. dhansanjivani. org/chinese-food. asp Feng C (2002) Merging Chinese Traditional Medicine into the American Health System, Journal of Young Investigators vol. 6, Issues 5. Perry G A, Potter P. A and Health (1995) Potter and Perry’s Fundamentals in Nursing Theory and Practice, Elsevier Health Sciences. ISBN 072342005X