[Madira Maleba]

#88731

Dignity in a setting of caring for life-limiting and life-threatening conditions means managing or caring for patients with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions with respect and honor. Treating patients with dignity ensures that they feel worthy of living despite their illnesses and challenges. It extends to the patients’ families.

dignity in this setting can be achieved by ensuring that the patient ‘s challenges are attended to. Patients should be treated holistically, taking into account their biopsychosocial and spiritual needs. This means that patients are treated as patients not diseases. Their values and preferences should be identified and be the integral part when managing them. Pain and other symptoms associated with life-liming and life-threatening can undermine patients’ dignity. Patients can be empowered to make their own decision (autonomy) and be an integral part of their care plans. Open communication taking account of the patient s age and developmental stage is important in pediatrics. Empathy for the child and the family is important.

Instances where dignity can be undermined include the following especially in the environment where I am working:
1. Overcrowded wards undermines patient ‘s dignity because there is lack of privacy.
2. Doctors do rounds and discuss among themselves about the patient’s condition without engaging them. This also undermines the privacy of the patient and the family as all the others in the ward can hear what is being discussed.
3. Lack of private rooms for discussions and examination of patients can undermine their dignity.
4. children’s input is often undermined by either health care providers and family.
5. Poor symptom control due to inability of the health care providers’ ability to assess and alleviate pain and other symptoms undermines dignity
6. Methods used to keep patient down when doing procedures such as forcefully holding them down to put up a drip, NGT, catheter undermines their dignity
7. Failure to include and take in to consideration the child’s ideas and preferences when managing them undermines them.
8. Exposing children without their consent or assent undermines them.

[Tracy]

#88755

Madira, you’ve touched on some crucial points about how children’s dignity can be undermined. It’s so true that we often overlook the small but significant aspects, like ensuring privacy or simply calling the child by their name, which are key to maintaining respect and dignity. I really appreciate your inclusion of the sentence, “This means that patients are treated as patients, not diseases.” It perfectly encapsulates what dignity-conserving care is all about—treating the child as an individual, not just focusing on their illness.

[Author]

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