Health is an important aspect of human life. As such, it should be treated with utmost seriousness. Some cultural beliefs and customs, however, may affect healthcare delivery. Though legal, some of these beliefs may have negative medical effects on the society and a medico-legal professional will have to know how to cope with such cases (Hartley, 2012). This paper will analyze how to deal with such beliefs that medico-legal professional might encounter.
Such beliefs and customs are usually based on the religion affiliations of those concerned. Examples include the negativity towards autopsy in some religions and appraisal of the female genital mutilation in some communities. Rituals and customs that surround the dead are also common (Taktak et al., 2016).
In addressing such cases, a medico-legal professional should concentrate on creating awareness on the issues that he finds challenging. To do this successfully, it would be important to use religious and cultural leaders. Religion has shown to be effective in preventing some illegal cases of medical importance. For example, a study showed that during the holy month of Ramadan, few cases of suicide are witnessed (Taktak et al., 2016). It, therefore, means that if religion is used to fight some vices in the society. This way, the religious leaders could convince people on the need for autopsy, and campaign against some harmful cultural practices.
Laws and regulations should be put in place to regulates some of the cultural beliefs and customs that maybe medically harmful to the public. For instance, the rituals performed on the dead (Lobar et al., 2006). The medico-legal person should ensure that regulations available only allow such rituals to be done on bodies that have been tested and declared harmless. The knowledge of the law should be made available to the residents so that they what is expected of them.
Lastly, to gain acceptance in the societies they are working in, the medico-legal professionals should promote the positive cultural beliefs and customs of the residents. This would confirm to the general public that the person is not against their culture and they would probably agree to quit the negative culture (Hartley, 2012).
Overcoming the cultural barriers is important in public health care. Learning how to address the cultural differences is important for a medico-legal profession if the public health needs are to be met.
Reference
Hartley, P. R. (2012). Paramedic practice and the cultural and religious needs of pre‐hospital patients in Victoria (Doctoral dissertation, Victoria University).
Lobar, S. L., Youngblut, J. M., & Brooten, D. (2006). Cross-cultural beliefs, ceremonies, and rituals surrounding death of a loved one. Pediatric nursing, 32(1), 44-50.
Taktak, S., Kumral, B., Unsal, A., Ozdes, T., Aliustaoglu, S., Yazici, Y. A., & Celik, S. (2016). Evidence for an association between suicide and religion: a 33-year retrospective autopsy analysis of suicide by hanging during the month of Ramadan in Istanbul. Australian Journal of Forensic Sciences, 48(2), 121-131.
