In response to a growing Muslim population in
Central Kentucky, the University of Kentucky Hospital is offering a
workshop to help employees better understand Islam so they can treat
Muslim patients with respect for their religion.
Yesterday, Chih Ian Lee, a training
specialist for UK's Human Resource Development office, led 14 attendees in
a discussion of end-of-life, dietary, gender and other concerns as part of
the seminar Health Care and the Muslim Patient.
"Islam is more than a religion," Lee said.
"It really is a way of life."
He reminded participants that pork and
alcohol are forbidden, so the hospital should strive to provide meals and
medication that are free of those ingredients.
And he pointed out that Muslims pray five
times daily while facing Mecca, the holy city in Saudi Arabia.
Lee distributed maps of the medical center
campus that Muslim patients could be given to help them orient themselves
for prayer in their hospital rooms, with an arrow showing which way to
face.
He encouraged the staff to respect their
patients' need for modesty by providing a caregiver of the same sex and by
not exposing more of the body than necessary during
examinations.
And he explained some of the religious
beliefs that might influence the way followers of the Quran react to
illness.
"Muslims greet news of illness with patience
and with prayers," Lee said. "It's a reliance on God."
Abdul Quayyum, chairman of the Kentucky
chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, applauded the
hospital's efforts.
"We are very happy," he said, adding that his
organization is preparing a similar training opportunity for Lexington
police.
Across the nation, hospitals have begun
making adjustments that reflect an increased sensitivity toward Muslim
patients.
The Maine Medical Center in Portland
redesigned its hospital gowns last year after realizing that Muslim women
were canceling outpatient appointments in anticipation of being humiliated
by the short, backless gowns that are standard issue in most
hospitals.
It began offering all patients the option of
a "sarong," a two-piece gown that comes down to the floor, covering the
legs, back and arms.
And in southeastern Michigan, which has a
large Arab population, Oakwood Hospital and Medical Center offers written
materials that have been translated into Arabic, as well as halal
meals prepared in a religiously acceptable way.
The UK workshop is being offered to hospital
employees four times this spring. The university is considering ways to
broaden it to a more general, campuswide audience.
Jennifer Bowden, a medical technologist in UK
Hospital's clinical laboratory, said she learned a lot from yesterday's
workshop.
"We're seeing more and more Muslim patients
in the hospital," she said. "I thought it would be wise to know how to
interact in such a way to respect them. I don't want to disrespect
somebody out of ignorance."
