Roman Catholic

1. Roman Catholic

2. Values & Faith • Love of God, Love of neighbor, forgiveness of sins of others and one's own. • Believe that God is the way, the truth, and the life. Believe that we were created in his image and that all things come from God.

3. Practices • The Roman Catholic Church celebrates seven sacraments throughout their members’ lives. • From the beginning of an adherent’s life with Baptism, through the end with the Last Rites, the church recognizes other such significant landmarks of an adherent’s life. • Confirmation, marriage rites, and ordination through Holy Orders for those who are so called; weekly and even daily distribution of the Communion.

4. Beliefs • The basic religious beliefs of Roman Catholics are those shared by other Christians as derived from the New Testament. • The central belief is that God entered the world through the Incarnation of his Son, Jesus of Nazareth. • God is considered one in nature but consisting in three divine persons.

5. Nursing Issues • If a patient is brought into the hospital unconscious or in a serious condition and found to have a rosary, Catholic medal, or identification card indicating that the patient is Catholic, a priest should be called so the patient may have the Sacrament of the Sick (last rites of the Church).

6. Death & Dying • Death is viewed from three aspects: • Visible reaction: emphasis on faith in God. • Fear of dying and of judgment: trying to get life in order. • Desire for death: emphasis on returning to God. • Sacrament of the Sick is a vital part of the Catholic faith. • This comforts both the patient and the family members.

7. Family • Families often gather together to celebrate holidays, birthdays, baptisms, first communions, graduations, and weddings. • Family is a close-knit group and the most important social unit.

8. Family Cont’d. • Family ties are very strong. • For Example, when someone travels to another town or city to study or for a short visit, staying with relatives or even with friends of relatives is a common practice.

9. Nutrition • Many Catholics abstain from their intake of meat during Lent. • Lent is the 40-day period from Ash Wednesday to Easter. • Some Catholics have maintained this custom to abstaining from meat on Fridays.

10. Medication • The Catholic Church finds tubal ligation and sterilization unacceptable. • Medications for birth control should not be used, but it is considered acceptable for a woman to take a birth control pill for another physical ailment, if her intent is not to use it as birth control.

11. Cont’d. • Abortion is not allowed. • The "double effect" is acceptable: undergoing a medical procedure for a different purpose, which results in the loss of a fetus. • Even if a woman's life is threatened by her pregnancy, aborting the fetus is not justifiable.

12. Rituals • Roman Catholics attach special significance to the rites of Baptism and Eucharist. • Baptism is sacred entry into Christian life. • Catholics also confess thier sins in reconciliation with the church, ordination to ministry, marriage of Christians, postbaptismal anointing, and the Anointing of the Sick.

13. Trans-cultural Nursing Process • Assessment of cultural nature. • Acceptance of each client as an individual. • Knowledge of health problems that affect particular cultural groups. • Planning of care within the client’s health belief system to achieve the best health outcomes.

14. Holidays • Easter, Christmas, & Mother Mary’s Birthday are the most important holidays in the Roman Catholic faith. • During important holidays, the patient may want to see a priest and/or attend Mass.

15. Bibliography • century, t. m., increased, t. C., success, o., wealth, t. a., socially, s. T., & agenda., t. s. (n.d.). The Roman Catholic Church. United States History. Retrieved February 21, 2010, from http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h3798.html • Christians, o. (n.d.). Roman Catholic Church, Catholicism. Public Services - Social, Religious, Scientific, Products, Environment. Retrieved February 21, 2010, from http://mb-soft.com/believe/txc/rcatholi.htm • Timby, B. K. (n.d.). Fundamental Nursing Skills and Concepts - Google Books. Google Books. Retrieved February 21, 2010, from http://books.google.com/books?id=M4HwH5IxfToC&pg=PA73&lpg=PA73&dq=roman+catholic+sensitive+nursing&source=bl&ots=yeSULSql8x&sig=8a7bgGPXOPtQU-nbk9fih1-u7mY&hl=en&ei=Pn6BS_evFoTANozi2NwJ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CBkQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=&f=false

16. Bibliography • Nursing Fundamentals 1 Multimedia Edition - Patient Relations - Transcultural Factors Influencing Nursing Care. (n.d.). Brookside Associates Medical Education Division. Retrieved February 21, 2010, from http://www.brooksidepress.org/Products/Nursing_Fundamentals_1/lesson_1_Section_4A.htm • Understanding the Hispanic Culture, HYG-5237-00. (n.d.). Ohioline. Retrieved February 21, 2010, from http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/5000/5237.html •  . (n.d.). Religion and Healthcare – Roman Catholic Church - Medhunters. MedHunters - Nursing and Healthcare Jobs. Retrieved February 21, 2010, from http://www.medhunters.com/Article/religionAndHealthcareRomanCatholic • The Importance of Catholic Orthodoxy. (n.d.). The Beginning Catholic's Guide to the Roman Catholic Church. Retrieved February 21, 2010, from http://www.beginningcatholic.com/catholic-orthodoxy.html • Dewit, S. C. (2008). Fundamental Concepts and Skills for Nursing (3 ed.). St. Louis: Saunders.