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If a patient asked you to pray with or for them at the bedside, would you?
I had this discussion with some other nurses and the responses were interesting. Some said they would have no problem, others said it was too personal a request for a patient to ask, and others said they would call the chaplain as they felt it is a chaplain function only.
I witnessed one occurence where a patient asked his nurse to pray with him. Without hesistation, she took his hand and prayed a very nice non-denominational prayer. I realize not everyone can or might not want to do this, but it really brought solace to that patient.
Your thoughts?
originally posted by lasvegasrnif a patient asked you to pray with or for them at the bedside, would you?
i had this discussion with some other nurses and the responses were interesting. some said they would have no problem, others said it was too personal a request for a patient to ask, and others said they would call the chaplain as they felt it is a chaplain function only.
i witnessed one occurence where a patient asked his nurse to pray with him. without hesistation, she took his hand and prayed a very nice non-denominational prayer. i realize not everyone can or might not want to do this, but it really brought solace to that patient.
your thoughts?
yes, i would pray with any patient who asked me to. :)
Originally posted by Susy KHuganurse:
If you claim it doesn't make any difference what god the patient asks you to pray to, then why pray to any god at all? Why not have the patient abandon his/her beliefs and pray to the god that the nurse chooses? You made the point of which god is the correct god anyway. Exactly. A nurse should have the right to not pray "to" a specific god of a patient's choosing. I'm sorry, but religious beliefs are a personal thing and a nurse shouldn't be forced to abandon hers simply because she is a NURSE.
I would pray WITH a patient but I would not pray "to" another god such as Budda, Allah or the sun or the trees. I am Catholic, I believe in God, the Father the Almighty, and I will not give that up or practice what I believe to be blasphemy for any patient. Bowing my head in a moment of silence, participating in a prayer, or guiding a patient through their questioning of faith is one thing IN A GENERAL SENSE. But I reserve the right to NOT pray to other gods. And I think you jumping all over Shay and attacking her belief that she only prays to her god is quite ballsy, if you will.
My religion is just as dear to me as the patient's religion is to them.
Thanks, sus. :)
I would not hesitate. I know the power of prayer through my own experiences. When my sister-in-law was pregnant she had this rae disease, I'm not sure what its called but whatever it is it makes you bleed alot if three things happen to you. Well she gave birth and she starting bleeding and she kept bleeding. They said it looked like someone had butchered a cow in there. For the first two days they thought she pretty much wasn't going to make it and if she did she would be in the hospital for like 2 or 3 months. Well me and my church and everyone we knew prayed and by that 4th day after she had the baby she was healed and she was able to go home the next day! And the ironic thing is a lady on the same floor with the same problem died. So we thanked God for saving my sister-in-law. So i would pray without a problem.
I would gladly kneel down or sit on the bed beside the pt and say a little prayer. I've done it numerous times, even with pt's that haven't asked ( because they couldn't.) One pt was on the vent and all the Dr.'s said that he would never come off. They also said that he would never walk again. I asked if he minded if I prayed for him. He shook his head No. Today, he is breathing on his own and walks with the aid of a cane or walker. *The power of prayer.*
Q.
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Huganurse:
If you claim it doesn't make any difference what god the patient asks you to pray to, then why pray to any god at all? Why not have the patient abandon his/her beliefs and pray to the god that the nurse chooses? You made the point of which god is the correct god anyway. Exactly. A nurse should have the right to not pray "to" a specific god of a patient's choosing. I'm sorry, but religious beliefs are a personal thing and a nurse shouldn't be forced to abandon hers simply because she is a NURSE.
I would pray WITH a patient but I would not pray "to" another god such as Budda, Allah or the sun or the trees. I am Catholic, I believe in God, the Father the Almighty, and I will not give that up or practice what I believe to be blasphemy for any patient. Bowing my head in a moment of silence, participating in a prayer, or guiding a patient through their questioning of faith is one thing IN A GENERAL SENSE. But I reserve the right to NOT pray to other gods. And I think you jumping all over Shay and attacking her belief that she only prays to her god is quite ballsy, if you will.
My religion is just as dear to me as the patient's religion is to them.