Puerto Rico Health Beliefs and Practices Birth Control Childbirth Food Preferences And Death and Dying
Providing patient-centered care includes the delivery of culturally safe and sensitive care. This means designing and delivering care plans that meet the health, social, and cultural needs of the patient. Puerto Rico is one of the territories of the United States. Puerto Ricans are the second largest subcultural group of Hispanics. Although a territory of the U.S., Puerto Rico has the highest poverty rates compared to other states. Up to 44 percent of Puerto Ricans live in poverty, with 57 percent of families with children living in extreme poverty (Puerto Rico Report, 2022). Puerto Ricans face major challenges when accessing healthcare in the U.S due to their economic status and due to their culture, which is different from the mainstream U.S population. This has contributed to a majority of Puerto Ricans suffering from worse health outcomes than other Americans, such as more chronic diseases, worse mental health outcomes, and a lower life span. In order to provide services that meet the health care and social problems of Puerto Ricans, a provider needs to understand their culture and views of health. This paper presents the health beliefs and practices, birth control, childbirth, food preferences, and death and dying perspectives of Puerto Ricans.
Health Beliefs and Practices
Puerto Ricans view the body as one made of a body, a mind, and a spirit. A majority of Puerto Ricans, whether living in Puerto Rico or in the United States, maintain a close relationship and hold to their traditional views about health, sickness, and ways of curing the body of any illness. Their health beliefs and practices are based on the ideologies of spiritualism central to the Puerto Rican culture. According to the Puerto Rican traditional views on health and disease, any form of illness or health issue that affects the body in any form is viewed as a possession by evil spirits (Purnell & Fenkl, 2019). Due to this view on health, the health practices of Puerto Ricans include consulting a medium and use of natural or traditional medicines to manage the illness rather than consulting a healthcare professional. Puerto Ricans also tend to be suspicious of new and modern medicines and other healthcare practices. They tend to take time to adopt new healthcare practices and may avoid such practices if they tend to contradict their traditional health beliefs.
Death and Dying
The Puerto Ricans believe that the physical world and the spiritual life are a continuum of life. They view death and dying as transitioning from the physical to the spiritual world. The Puerto Rican religious beliefs are majorly composed of Christian or Catholic denominations, and traditional beliefs hold the belief that the people in their life go to rest and join their ancestors in heaven or the spirit world. To Puerto Ricans, death is not the end of one’s life but rather a transition from earth to the afterlife. Puerto Ricans, like other Hispanic traditions, hold vigils and long prayers for their dead ones to ease their transition from the physical world to the spiritual world. Besides these, Puerto Ricans may also hold other ceremonies in respect of the departed. In most Hispanic traditions, persons at their end of life wish to be surrounded by family and people close to them in their life (Balk, 2020). However, the nature of the U.S healthcare system does not support such wishes, as those dying within hospital settings are more likely to die surrounded by strangers.
Food Preferences
Puerto Ricans have a very rich and unique culinary heritage. The Puerto Ricans’ food preferences and their food traditions are influenced by native islanders, Spanish food traditions, African food traditions, and culinary traditions. Puerto Ricans’ traditional dish is the Arroz con gandules. This is a dish served across Puerto Rico, which is made of rice with pigeon peas or beans and spiced with a sauce called sofrito. Besides the rice and beans dish, Puerto Ricans also have other dishes that are traditional to the Puerto Rican culinary culture, such as the mofongo, coquito, pasteles, tembleque, and tostones. Other dishes or drinks that are linked to Puerto Rican food culture or traditions include the Puerto Rico Pina Colada Cocktail, the Lechon Asado Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico Quesito Cheese Pastry, Puerto Rico café, Alcapurrias, and Bacalaitos.
Birth Control and Childbirth
Puerto Rican traditional views on children and childbirth are against birth control. Puerto Ricans view a child born into a family as a blessing from God. All pregnancies are appreciated, and the view of a child as a blessing means that no pregnancies are unwanted. Besides this view, Puerto Ricans view having a child with a certain man as a security for marriage. Puerto Rican women tend to ha