Philosophy Of Holistic Patient Care 

In Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracey Kidder, we learn about the life of doctor Paul Farmer and his pursuits to solve many of the world’s health problems. His approach is unconventional, but it works. It involves being there with the people he wants to help, getting his hands dirty, not just working in a lab. In his work, he emphasizes an important aspect of Catholic Social Teaching, the Preferential Option for the Poor, or as he calls it O for the P, and he describes it as “a special concern in distributive justice for poor and vulnerable persons.”Philosophy Of Holistic Patient Care Paper Although his organization Partners in Health, or PIH, is a non-religious organization, he cites this concern for distributive justice as the moral guideline he follows in his work. PIH hospitals are in some of the most economically disadvantaged locations known for their poverty and health problems, but even with these circumstances the workers at these hospitals are trained to care for the patients with the utmost respect, even more than what might be found at some of the best hospitals in the United States. Another important aspect of how Farmer runs patient care at PIH hospitals is the aspect of care that goes beyond giving the patient medication and leaving them. He emphasizes that factors like the caloric intake of the patient, a big factor in a country like Haiti where malnutrition afflicts a large portion of the population, as well as the quality of water they drink which is also important to successful treatment for many diseases. These are examples of the kind of resources that Farmer provides to patients in addition to medicine and treatment. An important contributor to Farmer’s vision of O for the P on a global scale is Jim Kim, a friend of Farmers who also worked for PIH. Mr. Kim was responsible for the tasks involved with running the organization and spreading the message of PIH in the political field. Providing healthcare in foreign countries can require the approval or support of the government. In Mountains Beyond Mountains we learn about his desire to spread O for the P in this quote:Philosophy Of Holistic Patient Care Paper