This paper analyzes the components of the healing hospital paradigm and its relationship with spirituality. It also focuses on the challenges of healing hospitals and a Biblical evidence of the importance of faith, love and care in the healing process as mentioned in the book of Exodus 15:26. This is also related to the relationship between healing, mental and psychological statuses of the patients.
The components of healing hospital include love and care, a healthy physical environment and an integrated technology to facilitate the healing process. Implementing these components ensures that the patient has got well quickly and created a peaceful environment. Koenig (2002) confirms that for a quick and full recovery of patients, they should be in a comfortable environment. The staff should love and care for patients. Most patients get worse because people who do not care about their mental attitudes for treating them and some may even discourage them of ever surviving. As they interact, the doctors should be friendly and give patients hoping even when there is none. This should be facilitated with prayers and spiritual teachings to build their faith and trust in God. By doing this, patients get both physically and spiritually healed. This makes patients comfortable and psychologically preparing them for the treatment. A healthy physical environment refers to the surrounding of patient. For the patient to recover, he needs an adequate rest, a balanced diet and a clean environment. The noisy environments in hospitals and the poor sanitation worsen most illnesses. For instance, patients with the high blood pressure need quiet places, which are stress free. Cleanliness in hospitals prevent from the re-infection and transmission of other diseases. Spiritually, love and care are emphasized in the people’s co-existence. Every human being should be his neighbor’s keeper and treat him the same way he would like to be treated. Henderson (2006) asserts that the advancement in technology has led to the introduction of more efficient and effective machines that help the treatment. These machines are accurate in diagnosing a disease. They have also reduced the works of doctors, which were done manually. The components of the healing hospital aim at providing the best services to patients to cure their diseases and give them some hope as they encounter the difficulties in life. Love and care are not only emphasized during the interaction between the staff and patients but also among the staff and the society. This creates a spirit of goodwill. The human body is more than just the physical wellness. It includes a mental, emotional and psychological well-being. These components require a huge initial cash outlay, which may not be affordable by most hospitals, but they are effective in achieving the goals of hospital. These components require the investment and proper planning from management to be effective. They also require the commitment from the staff.
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Some of challenges of setting up a healing environment include: inadequate funds and legal limitations and difficulties in setting up the appropriate staff system. The healing environment advocates for a healing physical environment and the integrated technology, which require the heavy initial cash outlay. For the hospital to be clean and provide the good meals for patients, it has to invest a lot of money. Acquiring or leasing the necessary technology being advanced is expensive that most of hospitals may not afford. They also need to be maintained regularly to keep them working appropriately. This requires a lot of money since the skilled technicians will be paid. The doctors using these machines also need the training since they may not be updated with the latest technology. Most of these machines require the electricity to run. This makes them expensive to be applied. They cannot be used in the areas that have no electricity such as rural regions. Chapman (2003) affirms that recruiting the best staff being ready to maintain the standards of the healing hospital is expensive. It entails the training of employees on how to deal with patients. They also need the motivation through the provision of fringe benefits, since the human being needs the stimulus to work efficiently. All these require the finances to be implemented. Since the healing hospital is a new initiative in the health sector, legal issues such as the insurance premium and litigations may limit it. Litigations may be due to the system not completely accepted by people and the state. The traditional system of staff was hierarchical where there were the leaders and their subordinates. Subordinates were reporting directly to their superiors; and the relationship was always formal. A leader gives orders that are not supposed to be questioned by subordinates. In some instances, the staff relationship was strained due to the poor communication among them. It was a master-servant relationship where the master is the king and the servant always feels being not involved in the organization. Since people are used to this type of system. It m be difficult to introduce a new system where there are no superiors and subordinates. Henderson (2006) confirms that they all have to relate at the personal level. This will be difficult for present leaders to adopt; they may not desire their superiority to be reduced. They may not also want to work at the same level as those in the lower hierarchy. This may cause the conflicts among them and lead to a high turnover of superiors due to the feeling of intimidation. They may not cope with the new system. It also means that they will have to freely interact with patients showing them love and care that the rest of the staff show. This makes them uncomfortable in their ordinary duties. There will be a need for the gradual implementation of new system. This may require more time and resources to be spent. Training them on the way to treat patients with love and care and on creating a good environment of interaction with fellow staff will need the money and time to achieve the organizational goals.
The Bible supports an initiative of the healing hospital due to goodwill and submission to one creator. This is evident in Exodus 15:26. This comes after God has punished Egyptians for breaking the Ten Commandments. God, with the help of his prophets, has promised to people that he will not bring diseases that Egyptians suffered from. The purpose was for them to hear his voice and do what is right; also, to obey the Ten Commandments. He goes ahead to state that He is the God that heals people. This verse gives the weight to the healing hospital idea encouraging the healing of patients physically, emotionally and spiritually. The Ten Commandments, which God says, must be followed. They emphasize the goodwill love and care for our neighbors being in this case and representing patients in hospitals. It also follows God’s commands since it promotes the understanding and fairness among the staff and patients. This verse shows a relationship between healing and spirituality that God directs. It is important that as hospitals treat people, they should listen to God’s advice ensuring love, peace and obedience to the Ten Commandments.