Pain and Its Relevance with Culture and Ethics - Assignment Example

Legal, cultural, and ethical issues are inescapable, no matter who the patient or the doctor is. One of the main goals of the field of medicine is ‘Maintenance or improvement of the quality of life through relief of symptoms, pain, and suffering.’ When the doctor and the patient differ in ethnicity, identification, diagnosis, and treatment can become, difficult through language or other cultural differences. It can have legal implications. I chose this area of research because of my concern with multi-cultural issues in medicine.

It is a field of endeavor that suits my temperament and interests me deeply because of its ability to solve significant problems and help those who need it most. To improve a patient’s quality of life and relieve pain, communication and understanding are paramount. The doctor and other medical staff need to establish a means to gain an understanding of the patient’s language and customs, through interpreters if necessary. Sensitivity to cultural peculiarities is very important, and gender issues (among others) might be magnified instead of diminished.

In some cultures, for example, it is simply not ethical for a female patient to discuss certain conditions with a male doctor.