The Social and Cultural Influences Essay

The Social and Cultural Influences on My Career as An Advance Practice Registered Nurse (Nurse Practitioner)

 Introduction

In life, there are influences that may shape one’s career choice or other life decisions. These influences majorly emanate from the social and cultural factors that one is subjected to. The traditions, culture, language, physical environment, family structure, religion and societal systems are among the major social and cultural influences that play a great role in shaping someone’s life. Moreover, the social and cultural influences have a great impact when it comes to the health issues, both in making health decisions, as well as patient choices and influences (Fan, et al., 2014). In this regard, the social and cultural influences are a great influence in the lives of the health professionals, and thus plays a great role in shaping their career choices and the way they conduct themselves professionally in the course of their duty. The Social and Cultural Influences Essay.  This essay will focus on the influences of the social and cultural factors in my life with a sharp focus on the career choice, professional conduct and future expectations as an Advance Practice Registered Nurse (Nurse Practitioner).

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An Overview of My Social and Cultural Influences

My background is India and considering India is the second most populous country in the world, it is also expected that it is rich in culture and traditions, making it one of the most culturally diverse countries globally. With these facts, the social and cultural influences are expected to shape the many lives of the people within India, especially those born and raised within this multicultural environment. Poor sanitation, pollution, illiteracy, poor health access and poverty are the common social health determinants that largely contribute to the India’s social and cultural influences when it comes to the health matters.

India is one of the countries that records a high number of mental health related issues, with nearly 100 million people being diagnosed with mental illnesses by 2019 (Banavaram, et al., 2020). Poverty, poor health access and other economic disadvantages have been cited as the greatest contributors of the anxiety and depressive cases that are rampant in India. This is especially so in the rural areas where cases of mental illnesses are highly recorded compared to the urban centers where social and cultural influences have a low impact (Ng, et al., 2014). Mental illnesses extend beyond the concerned patient and thus have a great impact on the economic and social well-being of the society. The Social and Cultural Influences Essay.

Social and Cultural Influences on My Career Choice

Coming from an Indian background with rich culture and traditions, I have always been influenced by the social and cultural factors that couple my native communities. Growing up in an environment where there is an imbalance of both economic and health factors was a great drive that shaped my career choice when I finished my high school. Witnessing a large number of populations suffering from mental illnesses within my community influenced me to pursue a nursing career that will assist this disadvantaged group.

Although India suffers from other health issues such as pollution and high infant mortality rate, mental illness has a far-reaching negative effect to the society compared with the rest of the health issues (Banavaram, et al., 2020). Mentally ill persons cannot support themselves economically and thus becomes a burden to both the government and the community. As such, cases of neglect, abuse as well as suicide can emanate from a mental illness case, therefore emerging as one of the most critical health issues that requires attention for a country such as India that continues to record a high number of birthrates each year.

In this context, I pursued a career as an Advance Practice Registered Nurse (Nurse Practitioner), so as to fulfil my dream of assisting my community now and in future, when it comes to mental related illnesses. Currently, I am taking classes for Master of Science Nursing, Nurse practitioner (MSN, NP) in a psychiatric mental health track, having shifted from India to US. This career choice and determination have largely been influenced by my background, social and culture, having witnessed a population that requires great attention when it comes to health dissemination. Without proper knowledge on how to handle these cases, and considering the shortage of professionals in this area, I would not be able to assist in any way in curbing both the current situation, as well as the future cases (Costa & Olfson, 2016). The Social and Cultural Influences Essay. For this reason, I was influenced first to pursue a career as a registered nurse and then to sharpen my specialized area of mental illness, I opted to pursue the MSN in psychiatric mental health track.

My Future Career Growth and Expectation

Mental related disorders may include eating, mood, psychotic, substance, anxiety, personality, abuse, as well as trauma-related disorders. The global statistics also suggest an increase in the population of those suffering from the mental related disorders. This trend suggests that in the near future, there will require to be highly trained practitioners in this area to tame this rising menace. Economic challenges such as unemployment, low income and inadequate health care resources continue to put pressure on the already worse mental health sector, thus leading to a continued increase in the mental illness disorders (Hardy & Price, 2018).

Considering the situation at hand, pursuing my MSN psychiatric mental health track will equip me with the professional knowhow and knowledge to handle cases across the mental illness areas (Jormfeldt, et al., 2018). This will include the assessment of the mental health needs of an individual, a group or families, and taking up the necessary professional action as required. Mental ill patients are delicate and especially when it comes to culture and social values that a professional requires to observe when handling such patients. With an advanced career such as MSN, NP and the exposure to a more advanced education system such as the US system, one gains the confidence and knowledge to handle the mental illness cases as expected.

My social and cultural elements demand for respect and dignity for patients no matter their social or cultural background. This same principle is advocated by the nursing professional conduct, and therefore, the observation of moral values and respect is a core principle on both ends. Although India has made some progress in curbing the mental illness cases, the social and cultural influences remain a great hindrance to this pursuit. Mentally ill patients, especially in the rural regions experience neglect, abuse and other social disadvantages as there generally lacks the understanding of the community on the basis of effects, treatment or causes of such cases (Marshall, et al., 2010). The Social and Cultural Influences Essay. With this in mind, and having been brought up in such a background, I am determined that one day I will get back to India and assist in equipping the community with knowledge on how to handle such cases so that I can make a positive impact, as well as assist the communities in improving their mental health (Hardy & Price, 2018).

Nurse practitioners are bestowed with a vital role when it comes to clinical situations that demand specialized treatments. One such settings is the handling of the mentally ill patients where Nurse practitioners are fully involved in the clinical decisions of whether to rehabilitate, isolate, offer involuntary treatment, go for counselling, as well as relative involvement in critical situations (Fradelos & Staikos, 2013). All these demands a high degree of professionalism as sometimes it may ignore the ethics protocols in doing what is right in order to offer the involved patient a quality and deserved service for an improved mental health. Each mental illness case may pose a unique challenge and thus may call for individualized treatment and handling, making the mental illness cases one of the complex settings when it comes to health service dissemination.

Handling of mentally ill patients is delicate and thus demands more than a career. It involves self-sacrifice, making of hard decisions and sometimes taking great risks in the course of assisting the mentally ill patients. The highest degree of understanding and respect for the patients is demanded at all times. A knowledge in professional collaboration is also vital as sometimes the cases may demand a team approach in order to get the desirable results. As such, the future demands a continued learning of the changing events in the area of mental health in order to one equipping themselves with the necessary knowledge and updating themselves with the change in the treatment trend. The Social and Cultural Influences Essay.

Conclusion

In a recap, the cultural and social influences play a great role in someone’s life. Life choices can largely be determined by these influences and therefore, they become critical in shaping someone’s future including their career. My exposure to the Indian social and cultural background largely contributed to my current career as an Advance Practice Registered Nurse (Nurse Practitioner), with a concentration in psychiatric mental health, due to the drive that was created in me by observing a population that continued to be vulnerable due to their mental conditions. My career path will focus on making a positive impact to the community in regard to the mental illness conditions. In this regard, my social and cultural influence has shaped my future as a professional nurse practitioner equipped with knowledge that will greatly assist in the assistance of a neglected and vulnerable group of mental ill patients.  

References

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Hardy, S., & Price, B. (2018). Well-being, physical and mental health: part 1. Mental Health

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Jormfeldt, H., Doyle, L., Ellilä, H., Lahti, M., Higgins, A., Keogh, B., . . . Kilkku, N. (2018).

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