Philosophy of medicine essay

The book, the Spirit Draws You and You Fall Down by simply Anne Fadiman is a great

objective check out the world of two different nationalities and their idea

systems. The viewpoints of the Hmong along with the American doctors represent Hmong

lifestyle and the reason for Western medicine. The publication takes into account just how two

cultures, rather, two completely opposite worlds are collided and their

effect on each other (Fadiman 1997). The book unearths the root meaning of

how several Western medication can be by different nationalities and its challenges

and implications. In addition , Fadiman questions the particular basics of philosophy

through into account the simple metaphysics and moral integrity that encounter Lias

doctors and parents and what position society performs. The publication questions the idea

system of Western medicine in addition to the Hmong philosophy and cultural practices.

Fadiman encourages all of us to think of the basis of European culture and medicine as

well while learning about the Hmongs values. Which is more relevant? Each time a

patient is within a existence or death situation, in whose opinion and expertise upon medicine

contains higher ground? When it comes to Lia Lee, this was the condition. Why was Hmong

culture and practice irrelevant in the eyes of the many doctors and nurses that

cared for Lia? Reading this publication, it is evident to see the viewpoint of european

medicine compared to Hmong tradition. This book helps clearly determine western

tradition and its biomedical system by contrasting that to the Hmongs. The publication

more than whatever, else analyzes the epistemological, metaphysical, and moral

viewpoints of both equally western medicine and that from the Hmong culture and inquiries

their quality and success. Epistemology is a theory of knowledge(Tauber).

With this book, the theory of knowledge can be posed by 1 question. Just how did Lea

get sick? This question contributes to two diverse viewpoints American medicine

and culture as well as the Hmong. The main of Western medicine can be biomedicine. What

makes biomedicine unique and sets that apart from different cultures is a idea that

there is certainly only one response and 1 truth lurking behind that. Basically, it is a

matter of facts and the question of what, certainly not how(Tauber). This is the primary

big difference between Hmong culture and Western treatments. In the book, Lias

doctors planned to know the a single problem that was causing Lia to obtain severe

seizures. They neglected to ask how Lia got unwell. The view of Lias father and mother

was the complete opposite. They desired to know how Lia got sick and if this kind of

meant Lia was blessed with a present and would become a txiv neeb(Fadiman).

To comprehend the epistemological perspective with the Hmong, we must first consider

into account their particular cultural id and how that they practiced that. The Hmong were

determined in their idea system and were wary of the doctors in Favor in there

proper care of Lia. Under their care, they thought, Lia might have been cured. The

Hmong cultures to cure a disease, in Lias case the quag apply peg, there have been

animal eschew made. Lias parents declare Lias soul had remaining her when

her sister had accidentally slammed the door. This justification that the

door frightened Lia and was the source of the group of medical concerns she

could face, can be an example of the epistemological perspective of Lias parents. It was

interesting to learn in the book, because Faddiman recounts, the way the doctors

treated Lias parents. As a result of cultural hurdle, communication challenges

pertained to everything from placing your signature to a record to operations of medication

for Lia. Because of the social barrier, there are problems of moral ethics since

well. Did the doctors ever take into account the parents wishes for their child?

Lias father and mother believed the fact that only medicine they were ready to give Lia

would be the kind that would be fast and preferably in a supplement. The Hmong culture

is usually against photos and bloodstream being consumed large quantities along with anything

that can affect the sprinkle and trigger evil state of mind to enter her soul(Fadiman).

Epistemologically speaking, the doctors a new completely different point of view of

what happened to Lia than her parents. In the doctors viewpoint, their

main concern was not mostly how Lia got sick and tired but rather where existence

with the illness originate from. There absolute goal as Lias doctors was to stop the

seizures that were taking control of Lias body also to do that that they needed to

know where the issue was located. Was the unrestrainable epilepsy caused by a

neurological debt in Lias brain? On the other hand, was presently there something

tiny that the doctors could not see that caused Lia to have a exclusive

disease that experienced nothing to perform with regular standard epileptic patients? This is

where the Hmong perspective and the view of Western medicine take diverse

paths. You could question if perhaps they were ever on the same way to begin with. The

doctors questioned where the illness came from as the Lias parents asked

how. Epistemology comes from the Greek episteme, meaning

knowledge, and logos, which includes several meanings, including theory. (www.comptons.com).

Whereas metaphysics is involved with the fundamental nature of reality

epistemology deals with the possibilities and limitations of human knowledge. It

tries to arrive at a knowledge of knowledge itself(www.md.com). Additionally it is a

risky branch of beliefs and tries to answer this sort of questions as: Is the

universe as persons perceive that the basic truth, or do people perceive only

appearances (or phenomena) that conceal basic truth? What are the boundaries

between reason and knowledge, on the other hand, and what some thinkers call the

illusions deriving from metaphysics? What is the basis for understanding? Is it

remark, experience, pure intuition, or ideas? On the other hand, is there

some other basis? (www.comptons.com) In Lias circumstance, the basis intended for knowledge

stemmed from two very different cultures. The idea and basis for

reassurance that the Hmong had presumed for years centered on the sprit and the

sprinkle. Western treatments was a lot more narrow and dismissing virtually any

idea that the practices and rituals with the Hmong can be of virtually any help. Know-how

may be viewed as having two parts. There is, first, what one perceives, hears

variations, tastes, and smells. Up coming there is the method these awareness are

organized by the mind to form ideas or concepts. The problem of epistemology can be

based on how philosophers have recognized the relationship of the mind to the

rest of reality(Tauber). The Hmong believed in animal sacrifice and treating the

body with herbs and liquids rather than injecting the sufferer with sharp needles and

taking blood. This process harms the individual in line with the Hmong, and

damages this so the heart and soul will have a harder time coming back. One of many

concerns while using treatment of Lia was the medication she was on. Since doctors

did not know for certain what Lia had and what was causing her seizures

several combinations and doses of medicine were given. From your doctors

perspective it was all they could do on the time(Fadiman 97)). Lias father and mother

believed which the administration of so many medications was the problem. In addition

the cultural barrier led to disappointment and anger when medicine was not presented

properly and when Lias father and mother decided against western medicine. Since the

Vietnam War ended in 1975, around 150, 1000 Vietnamese refugees have started

their hails from the United States in Westminster, Calif., and a residential area south

of Los Angeles in Orange County(Fadiman 97). Similarly, ethnic neighborhoods of

Laotians and Cambodians sprang in such says as Arizona, Louisiana, The state of illinois

Washington, Or, Virginia, Minnesota, Florida, and Pennsylvania. A bunch of states

had the biggest concentration coming from all Indo-Chinese groupings, except for the

Indo-Chinese Hmong, formerly a mountain-dwelling persons of Vietnam and Laos

whose greatest community was at Minnesota(www.comptons.com). Every group got its

individual language and culture and preferred to have isolated in the others. The

refugee injury in Southeast Asia had been escalating ever since considerable

bombing attacks were launched on North Vietnam in the mid-1960s. Right at the end of

the conflict countless numbers were destitute and thousands more searched for refuge through the

victorious Communists. American armed service forces evacuated many of the Thai

(among who were large numbers of cultural Chinese). Since repression and genocide

followed the Communist takeover, nonetheless more asile fled. Most notable were vast

numbers of boat people, who have used any sea boat at their disposal to escape

Indochina. A large number of were first sheltered in refugee camps throughout Southeast Asia

before reaching the Combined States(www.comptons.com). Although these migrants were

allowed into the Usa under various refugee laws, the government sought

the help of you are not selected agencies to look for American beneficiaries and to request jobs

and housing. The immigrants had been then provided for various parts of the country to

begin new lives. The governments goal in this software was to scatter them

and thus prevent the growth of ethnic colonies such as the the one which developed in

Westminster(www.comptons.com). The program failed quickly. Not long after their

first settlement, the refugee family members, driven by simply loneliness, started to

relocate to ethnic residential areas. Thus, the modern day settlement with the Indo-Chinese

asile developed from this second migration. These restablished immigrants identified

life tough. While most of the first Indo-Chinese refugees was

well-educated for people who live in cities, the later on arrivals came from rural qualification and

got limited, in the event that any, education. (The Hmong, for example , were subsistence

peasants without a created language. ) They did not really speak The english language, and their handful of

skills were useless in an urban, industrialized society. Many suffered from

physical and internal traumas that they had experienced before fleeing

Indochina(Fadiman 97). Desperate for funds and humiliated by their oppressed

situation, a couple of turned to lawbreaker activities, yet most worked hard for being

less dependent upon public help. Members of large families usually helped a single

another with living expenses and education costs. The origin of Hmong, We felt

was an important aspect in understanding the place that the Hmong came from and how come

in America, they secluded to themselves far more than any other race. Fadiman

goes into fine detail about the of the Hmong and their lifestyle struggle to

keep their identification. What I located interesting was that even in the us where the

Hmong attained their freedom, these were still unsatisfied. The social barrier was

never damaged partially because the Hmong did not want to assimilate and lose

themselves. Consequently, they generally secluded themselves and would not bother

learning English and finding jobs. The actual wanted primarily was a bit of

land exactly where they could grow foodstuff and animals to survive and practice their very own

beliefs. Ironically, they fled their country to be totally free and reached America

just to feel the opposing. In Lias case, there was an underlying query to

Lias sickness. The key question was why would Lia get sick? The doctors

questioned the presence of Lias sickness while her parents questioned why

there ever was an illness. Lias doctors looked to rationalism and reasoning while

her parents got this as being a sign to mean that her symptoms made her special. They

declared Lias state was since she held a special feature that the

txiv neeb also possessed. Her parents believed she was blessed in a way.

Metaphysics can be described as word gave almost accidentally. It is the name given to a

book written by Aristotle after he had accomplished his Physics, and it was

placed instantly afterward in your body of his writings(www.askjeeves.com).

Although Physics works with the visible world and its laws, Metaphysics is

focused on the principles, constructions, and meanings that underlie all

visible reality. It is the investigation, by means of pure rumours, of

the nature of beingof the cause, substance, and purpose of anything.

Metaphysics asks: What are space and period? What is a issue and how can it

differ from an idea? Are human beings free to decide their destiny? Is there a 1st

cause, or God, which includes made almost everything and put that in action? (www.comptons.com)

The view outside the window of European beliefs and ideology will be reinforced available that the

doctors of Encanto knew more about Lias sickness and medicine generally speaking based

on their knowledge of Western medicine. The doctors of Merced felt that the

medicine they applied held an increased ground, to them, and most assumed

that the Hmongs ritual practices of animalism and sacrifice were a waste of

time. Mainly because observation, encounter, or try things out cannot arrive at the

answers to such questions, they have to be products of the thinking mind(Tauber).

This kind of matters are extremely close, in fact , to the province of religion and Asia

the answers to questions are typically put in a strictly faith based

framework. In much 20th-century Western idea, metaphysics continues to be

dismissed as pointless rumours that can never achieve positive

results(Tauber). Nevertheless, metaphysics has many defenders who still check out

notions submit by Avenirse and Aristotle(www.comptons.com). For the average

person, good sense says that there is a real associated with perceivable objects.

These items can be examined and realized with a large degree of accuracy and reliability.

Philosophers never have been able to let the matter snooze there. When it comes to

Lias well being, her father and mother felt that less medicine , and less hospitalization

would make Lia better. They will felt that their touch and treatment power alone could

remedy their precious child. The doctors experienced otherwise and based this on the

supposition that they were right which Western medication was the just accurate

and trustworthy approach to treat an individual. In European culture, feeling ill is

specialized not ethical (Tauber). The underlying query was just how much of the

condition was technical and how most of it was portion of the social commune (Tauber).

Finally, the question that both the doctors at Encanto as well as Lias parents

ask is if the challenge could have been averted. This prospects us to

question the two their value systems. The main concern for Lia was her health and

the doctors of Merced made sure that they did anything they could despite

irreconcilable differences regarding Lias medicine with her parents as well

as the notion that Lia would be better if the girl stayed in the home without the

treatment of doctors. Whilst reading the book, Faddiman questions whether or not the

choice to place Lia in a foster home was a meaning one. Might she have already been better

off in the care of her parents whom neglected to give her the numerous

blends of drugs since they believed it would damage her? This kind of brings in

the role of ethics and moral, and what they imply in European culture. An additional

name pertaining to ethics can be morality. 1 word is derived from the Greek ethos, which means

character, as well as the other from the Latin mores, meaning

customized. (www.compton.com) Since both words suggest customary ways of

habit, they are to some degree misleading. The Greek philosopher Aristotle had a

better termpractical wisdom. It was called practical because it was concerned

with action, both on the part of the consumer and on fault society. This

had to do with what should or should not be done(www.askjeeves.com). Aristotle

divided practical intelligence into two parts: moral philosophy and political

idea. He described them with each other as a the case and reasoned state of

capacity to act with regard to the things which are good or bad for

gentleman. (www.comptons.com) The field of ethics features several subdivisions.

Descriptive values, as its identity suggests, looks at and evaluates ethical

tendencies of different peoples or cultural groups. Normative, or

prescriptive, ethics is concerned with evaluating and applying the judgments

of what is morally correct or incorrect, good or perhaps bad(Blais 93). It examines the

query of whether you will find standards intended for ethical carry out and, in the event so , what

those requirements are. Comparison ethics is a study of differing honest

systems to find out their commonalities and contrasts(Blais 93). In modern

developed societies, the systems of law and public rights are tightly related

to ethics in this they identify and impose definite legal rights and obligations. They

likewise attempt to repress and penalize deviations by these criteria. Most

communities have established standards, whether by custom or by law, to enable these in a

contemporary society to live collectively without undo disruption(ww. comptons. com). It is

possible for regulation to be simple in meaning issues, or it can be used to enforce

morality. The prologue to the Usa Constitution says that insuring

domestic tranquility is a subject of government. This statement is usually morally

fairly neutral. Such laws as individuals passed to enforce city rights, nevertheless , promote a

moral along with legal commitment(Blais 93). A whole lot human activity is simply

matter of customized or habit that tiny thought might be given to various actions. When

an individual in Western society gets in the morning, it really is normal to get

outfitted and to place on shoes before going out. Yet , in doing so , one would not

usually take the time thinking This is a good and necessary thing that Im

carrying out. There is a lot of behavior, yet , in which individuals are

conscious of how come they action in a particular way. They may be confronted with the requirement to

make choices. At the basis of choice two questions happen: What great do I

seek? and What is my responsibility in this scenario? (Blais

93) Ethics can be primarily worried about attempting to specify what is very good

for the consumer and for society(Tauber). It also tries to establish the

nature of obligations, or perhaps duties, that individuals owe themselves and each various other.

Philosophers thought for thousands of years that individuals do not voluntarily do

precisely what is bad for themselves but may do precisely what is bad for others if it looks that

good for themselves will certainly result. They have always been difficult to define precisely what is

good and how one should act to achieve it(www.askjeeves.com). Some instructors have

stated that pleasure is the best good. Other folks have aimed to expertise

personal virtue, or service to ones many other human being. Persons, and whole

societies, have got performed crazy criminal works on persons, and they include

found ways to justify this based on a few greater great. (Blais 93)

The difficulty in deciding what good and obligation will be has led meaningful

philosophers to divide in to two camps. One camp says that you have no certain

objective criteria that apply to everyone(Blais 93). People must decide what

their duties are in each new situation. Other folks have said that there are

standards that apply to everyone, that precisely what is good can generally be known. In the event that

the good is well know, the obligation to pursue it is clear. The positioning that

demands there are moral standards is called ethical peonage, and the

the one that insists there are no such norms is referred to as ethical relativity(Blais 93).

Among the clearest and most useful statements of honest absolutism came from

Aristotle in his Nichomachean Integrity (Blais 93). He realized that what people

desire they view as good. Even so, to say no more than this means that

most desires are excellent no matter how very much that they turmoil with one another.

As a result, there can be not any standards whatsoever. Aristotle solved this problem simply by

delineating between two types of desirenatural and acquired(www.comptons.com).

Organic desires are those needs that are popular among all humans such as foodstuff

and shelter. Beyond these kinds of, people in addition have a desire for overall health, knowledge, and

a measure of prosperity. If it is natural, these desire, or perhaps needs, are excellent for

everyone. Since there could be no wrong basic requirements, there can be not any wrong desire

for these needs(www.comptons.com). However , there are other wishes as well.

These are not demands but would like. It is in the level of wants that the character of

great becomes clouded. Individuals might want something they desire as a very good, but

it can be bad for them. People with audio judgment should be able to decide what

is good for these people, in contrast to what is only an apparent good(Blais 93). This kind of

sound wisdom comes with experience. Young children have got little connection with

what is good or bad for them, therefore they must be guided simply by parents and other

adults. Fully developed adults, however , should be able to determine what is good for them

though history illustrates that this is not always the truth. People must decide

what is good for others as well as for themselves(Fadiman 97). That may be, they

expect that items for them apply equally to other people. To treat

other folks in the same way 1 treats your self, Aristotle said it is necessary to

have three benefits of functional wisdom: temperance, courage, and

justice(www.comptons.com). Relativists do not believe there are

self-evident moral rules that are true for everyone. It is said that peoples

moral decision are dependant upon the traditions and practices of the contemporary society in

that they live(Blais 93). This is a definite example of for what reason the Hmongs views

differed from European culture. These kinds of may have been handed down for centuries

however age does not always mean they are true standards. They are really simply rules that

a certain society has developed for itself. What is right is what culture says

is right, and whatever is considered good for society must be right. In the event this

had been the case, did Lias doctors do almost everything they can? Were they will clouded

by mentality that Western medications was superior to the Hmong culture and

disregard the techniques that Lias parents highly believed would save their very own

child? In the event the doctors got taken a different sort of approach from the beginning and

hired interpreters and had not recently been one-sided within their beliefs, would Lias

fate be changed? As with your life, all selections involve risk. There are simply no principles

or perhaps standards which have been right for all people at all time. New circumstances demand

new approaches. The fact that was once valid may be inappropriate now. In the world of

the twentieth centurywith the rapid alterations, endless battles, and meaningful upheavalthe

suggestions of existentialism have looked like correct to numerous people in the

world(www.comptons. com). Some existentialists base all their position about

religion(Blais 93). Even in this article they say it can be impossible to fall again on ethical

laws or perhaps principles in making decisions. Alternatives must be built on faith, often in

conflict with traditional meaning guidelines. Individuals trust that what they are

performing is right, nonetheless they can be entirely wrong. They will commit themselves to the

unfamiliar, and the decision can often be a great agonizing difficulty. The Hmongs

beliefs were based on their beliefs in the recovery power of their very own medicine. Prior to

Lia started to be severely unwell, Hmong would not entirely dismiss Western remedies. They

would, however , assume that a combination of both would be far better than

simply Western treatments. Students of comparison ethics have found that most

societiesfrom the ancient towards the modern periodshare certain features in

their very own ethical codes(Blais 93). Some of these have applied only within a society

and some have been common. Most societies have had traditions or laws

forbidding homicide, bodily damage, or attacks on personal honor and reputation.

Societies rely on guidelines that define fundamental duties to do good and

furthering the welfare of the group. In societies where the significant

religionsJudaism, Christianity, Islam, and Buddhismare main, the duty

of helping the needy as well as the distressed continues to be implanted(www.comptons.com).

These obligations prolong beyond relatives to friends and even unknown people.

Telling the truth and keeping claims are also extensively regarded as obligations. When

Lia was taken away to a momentary foster house, the doctors promised Lias

parents that she would come back to them in six months. When their assurance fell

through and Lia was not came back as guaranteed, Lias parents began to

question the system, that was intended to guard the individual. The United

Says represents a number of ideals. For some of those that have come to its

shores, it means the ideal of freedomthe right to praise as one decides, to

search for a job ideal to types skills and interests, to be judged equally

before the regulation. It means the perfect of the frontier, of beating obstacles

toning down the Western, curing disorders, voyaging for the planets(Fadiman). It means the

great of progressthat personal existence and politics, social, and economic

organizations will improve through hard work, good play, and honest project. It

means the ideal of democracythe directly to be noticed as someone, the right

to cast a ballot within a free political election, the right to desire a better life and to

function toward types goals(Fadiman). The Hmong would not have this tone, nor felt

their viewpoints mattered in the matter of Lias wellness. In America that they felt like

foreign people, in their homeland they experienced the same. The fate of Lia Lee may have

been diverse if designed for ignorance, brilliance in European medicine, and a

cultural barrier that still continues today.

Bibliography

www.md.health www.comptons. com Blais, Debbie. The ethics of specialization.

Unpublished paper. University or college of Alberta (1993). Fadiman, Anne. The Spirit

Attracts You and You Fall Down. Noonday Press. Canada, (1997).

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