World Religions for Healthcare Professionals provides healthcare professionals with a basic knowledge of health beliefs and practices in world religions such as American Indian Religions, Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, and Taoism as well as selected new religious movements. It explores how various religious traditions view sickness, health, birth, and death. Its primary aim is to offer healthcare professionals a greater awareness of beliefs and practices so that they will be better informed in providing effective care to patients from various religious backgrounds. Many deeply controversial bioethics issues such as abortion, euthanasia, assisted suicide, and stem cell research are also addressed in this volume from the perspectives of world religions. Written in a user-friendly fashion and easy to reference, this book is suitable for all health practitioners and organized in a way that will make it easy to search and learn basic applications.

Religious beliefs and customs can significantly shape patients' and professionals' attitudes toward, and expectations of, healthcare, as well as their wishes and personal boundaries regarding such daily matters as dress, diet, prayer and touch. Undoubtedly, the sensitivity with which clinicians communicate with patients and make decisions regarding appropriate medical intervention can be greatly increased by an understanding of religious as well as other forms of cultural diversity. This second edition of a popular and established text offers healthcare students and professionals a clear and concise overview of health beliefs and practices in world religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Confucianism, Taoism, Sikhism, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. Adopting a consistent structure, each chapter considers the demographic profile of the community, the religion’s historical development, and key beliefs and practices, including views regarding health and sickness, death, and dying. Each chapter also ends with a useful checklist of advice on what to do and what to avoid, along with recommendations for further reading, both online and in print form. The book’s clear and consistent style ensures that readers with little background knowledge can find the information they need and assimilate it easily. A brand new chapter on applications and a set of new case studies illustrating issues in clinical practice enhance this wide-ranging book’s value to students and practitioners alike.

Health professionals provide care to patients of differing religions and cultures, and knowledge of their cultural and religious background, way of life and beliefs and practices is vital to delivering sensitive and responsive care. This revised and updated guide provides practical and comprehensive information on each of the major faiths, providing an accessible reference for appropriate day to day care of patients in multicultural societies. Healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, midwives, healthcare assistants, physiotherapists, psychologists, hospital chaplains and administrative staff will find it an indispensable ready reference.

This third edition of a popular text introduces healthcare students and professionals to a wide range of health beliefs and practices in world religions. Chapters on various religions are written to offer an insider’s view on the religion’s historical development, key beliefs and practices, including ideas of health, sickness, death, and dying. The chapters include case studies, advice on what to do and what to avoid when caring for patients. Introductory chapters invite the reader to consider the broad context of patient care in pluralistic society and explore one’s personal orientation to others from different religions. How we care for patients from different backgrounds and cultures insists on professional boundaries that the reader may have not yet examined. A new chapter explores the relationship between religion and public health in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, asking the reader to consider what morally appropriate balance is required if and when personal faith conflict with public health needs. Undoubtedly, the sensitivity with which clinicians communicate with patients and make decisions regarding appropriate medical intervention can be greatly increased by an understanding of religious and cultural diversity. This is a core textbook for students studying healthcare, religion and culture, and an invaluable reference for healthcare professionals.

The relationships between religion, spirituality, health, biomedical institutions, complementary, and alternative healing systems are widely discussed today. While many of these debates revolve around the biomedical legitimacy of religious modes of healing, the market for them continues to grow. The Routledge Handbook of Religion, Medicine, and Health is an outstanding reference source to the key topics, problems, and debates in this exciting subject and is the first collection of its kind. Comprising over thirty-five chapters by a team of international contributors, the Handbook is divided into five parts: Healing practices with religious roots and frames Religious actors in and around the medical field Organizing infrastructures of religion and medicine: pluralism and competition Boundary-making between religion and medicine Religion and epidemics Within these sections, central issues, debates and problems are examined, including health and healing, religiosity, spirituality, biomedicine, medicalization, complementary medicine, medical therapy, efficacy, agency, and the nexus of body, mind, and spirit. The Routledge Handbook of Religion, Medicine, and Health is essential reading for students and researchers in religious studies. The Handbook will also be very useful for those in related fields, such as sociology, anthropology, and medicine.

"The 2001 edition (1st) was a comprehensive review of history, research, and discussions on religion and health through the year 2000. The Appendix listed 1,200 separate quantitative studies on religion and health each rated in quality on 0-10 scale, followed by about 2,000 references and an extensive index for rapid topic identification. The 2012 edition (2nd) of the Handbook systematically updated the research from 2000 to 2010, with the number of quantitative studies then reaching the thousands. This 2022 edition (3rd) is the most scientifically rigorous addition to date, covering the best research published through 2021 with an emphasis on prospective studies and randomized controlled trials. Beginning with a Foreword by Dr. Howard K. Koh, former US Assistant Secretary for Health for the Department of Health and Human Services, this nearly 600,000-word volume examines almost every aspect of health, reviewing past and more recent research on the relationship between religion and health outcomes. Furthermore, nearly all of its 34 chapters conclude with clinical and community applications making this text relevant to both health care professionals (physicians, nurses, social workers, rehabilitation therapists, counsellors, psychologists, sociologists, etc.) and clergy (community clergy, chaplains, pastoral counsellors, etc.). The book's extensive Appendix focuses on the best studies, describing each study in a single line, allowing researchers to quickly locate the existing research. It should not be surprising that for Handbook for the past two decades has been the most cited of all references on religion and health"--

This third edition of a popular text introduces healthcare students and professionals to a wide range of health beliefs and practices in world religions. Chapters on various religions are written to offer an insider's view on the religion's historical development, key beliefs and practices, including ideas of health, sickness, death, and dying. The chapters include case studies, advice on what to do and what to avoid when caring for patients. Introductory chapters invite the reader to consider the broad context of patient care in pluralistic society and explore one's personal orientation to others from different religions. How we care for patients from different backgrounds and cultures insists on professional boundaries that the reader may have not yet examined. A new chapter explores the relationship between religion and public health in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, asking the reader to consider what morally appropriate balance is required if and when personal faith conflict with public health needs. Undoubtedly, the sensitivity with which clinicians communicate with patients and make decisions regarding appropriate medical intervention can be greatly increased by an understanding of religious and cultural diversity. This is a core textbook for students studying healthcare, religion and culture, and an invaluable reference for healthcare professionals.

Frequently in partnership, but sometimes at odds, religious institutions and public health institutions work to improve the well-being of their communities. There is increasing awareness among public health professionals and the general public that the social conditions of poverty, lack of education, income inequality, poor working conditions, and experiences of discrimination play a dominant role in determining health status. But this broad view of the social determinants of health has largely ignored the role of religious practices and institutions in shaping the life conditions of billions around the globe. In Religion as a Social Determinant of Public Health, leading scholars in the social sciences, public health, and religion address this omission by examining the embodied sacred practices of the world's religions, the history of alignment and tension between religious and public health institutions, the research on the health impact of religious practice throughout the life course, and the role of religious institutions in health and development efforts around the globe. In addition, the volume explores religion's role in the ongoing epidemics of HIV/AIDS and Alzheimer's disease, as well as preparations for an influenza pandemic. Together, these groundbreaking essays help complete the picture of the social determinants of health by including religion, which has until now been an invisible determinant.

Dr. Harold Koenig opens a window on mental health, providing an unprecedented source of practical information about the relationship between religion and mental health. He examines how Christianity and other world religions deliver mental health services today, and he makes recommendations, based on research, expertise, and experience, for new programs to meet local needs. Meticulously researched and documented, Faith and Mental Health includes Research on the relationship between religion and positive emotions, psychiatric illnesses, and severe and persistent mental disorders Ways in which religion has influenced mental health historically, and how now and in the future it can be involved with mental health A comprehensive description and categorization of Christian and non-Christian faith-based organizations that provide mental health resources Resources for religious professionals and faith communities on how to design effective programs Presenting a combination of the history and current research of mental health and religion along with a thorough examination of faith-based organizations operating in the field, this book is a one-of-a-kind resource for the healthcare community; its valuable research and insights will benefit medical and religious professionals, and anyone concerned with the future of mental health care.

This concise, easy-to-read book tackles the potentially awkward subject of culture in a direct, non-intimidating style. It prepares all health professionals in any clinical setting to conduct thorough assessments of individual from culturally specific population groups, making it especially valuable in today's team-oriented healthcare environment. The book is suitable for healthcare workers in all fields, particularly nurses who interact with the patients 24 hours a day, every day of the week. Based on the Purnell Model for Cultural Competence, it explores 26 different cultures and the issues that healthcare professionals need to be sensitive to. For each group, the book includes an overview of heritage, communication styles, family roles and organization, workforce issues, biocultural ecology, high-risk health behaviors, nutrition, pregnancy and child bearing, death rituals, spirituality, healthcare practices, and the views of healthcare providers. It also discusses the variant characteristics of culture that determine the diversity of values, beliefs, and practices in an individual's cultural heritage in order to help prevent stereotyping. These characteristics include age, generation, nationality, race, color, gender, religion, educational status, socioeconomic status, occupation, military status, political beliefs, urban versus rural residence, enclave identity, marital status, parental status, physical characteristics, sexual orientation, gender issues, health literacy, and reasons for migration. Each chapter offers specific instructions, guidelines, tips, intervention strategies, and approaches specific to a particular cultural population.