Running head: WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT WEEK 6

Written Assignment Week 6 Andrela L. Nickerson-Riley Liberty University

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT WEEK 6

Obesity is of great concern for me. My previous writings have been about childhood obesity; however, it is apparent that I must remember not to separate the adults. Obesity is an issue that is near and dear to my heart for several reasons: one being that I was a product of obesity and with that developed hypertension (HTN), two being that my son was a product of obesity and even though he did not develop a health concern, his mental being suffered a blow, and lastly my disgust for people eating just to be eating. I see people eating and hear them complain about their weight and while they continue to eat. It appears that we as a society have not only become comfortable with our thickness but we have become what Jesus Christ has cautioned us to not become and that is gluttons. I can remember as a child, Mrs. Rankin would take us to vacation bible school and during snack time, she would give us each a serving size of a snack. I would always say, Is that all we are going to get? or That is not enough. I want some more. Patiently, Mrs. Rankin would say, Glutness is a sin. Now at that time I did not understand what she meant; however, as I started to mature, I began to understand. Most of the time when we eat, we do so just because. We do so out of boredom or even due to emotional distress. I take a stand on these issues and other issues based on ethical, moral, and professional human services framework. Ethics have to deal with is morally right and wrong (Merriam-Webster, 2011). Is it morally wrong for someone to damage their body and gain weight? In some cultures, it is acceptable to be considered obese and unacceptable to be within normal body weight. However, in America, we are faced with many images of small women. Women are faced with the struggle of being size 0-6

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT WEEK 6 and if they are not that size then they are considered fat. Is that the image that we wont our children to see? This type of vanity goes against all biblical principles.

According to Proverbs 31:30, charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. In our society, beauty is when an individual is a certain size. Morals are basically based off of their religion and culture. This is what is considered the norm. There is a fine line between moral and ethics. And this is the reason as to why I believe that moral framework comes into play. There are several questions that arise when one has to decide if obesity is a moral issue: Can people get obese from eating properly? Are people obese from lack of exercise, the amount of food one eats, or genetics? Even with the above concerns, lies health concerns and the lack of healthcare. It has been said that many obese people do not have health problems such as diabetes, HTN, high cholesterol, etc. And the argument is that skinny people have these conditions. Even though this may be true, we are to treat our body as a temple and watch what we put into it. According to 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. This is the bi8blical perspective to a professional framework. Obesity is a challenging issue within the healthcare community. Many healthcare facilities do not want their employees to smoke or be obese. This not only has to do with the health of the individual but image. Many healthcare facilities want employees to look

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and be healthy as a face for their facility. For example, Palmetto Richland will not allow their employees to smoke on the campus. They must go across the street to smoke. Some health care facilities in South Carolina are not hiring based on weight. Now of course this is discrimination and they are to able to tell you that they will not hire you because the individual is obese, the facilities are using other ways to not hire people. It is because they believe that working in a health care environment should promote healthy living and obesity indicates the exact opposite. Even though, an individual can be obese from various reasons. Personally, in resolving ethical conflicts, I must take myself out of the situation and look at the situation or the individual from all angles. Not only do I take a fresh approach to a situation, I also look at my ethics and the culture. There are times when not everyone will have the same ethics as I have and that is important in ensuring that I make the correct judgment. I do not want to be an individual that judges or makes decisions based solely on my ethics and morals. I know for me, it is a personal struggle to maintain my weight but it is also a personal struggle for me not to input my views on others about weight management. One thing I have done to control this is I look at the individual and not their size and I love the person not their size or habits. We all have a vice and I am in no way shape or form able to judge someone else. Keeping this in mind, I am able to remain objective and help people when I am asked. The Greipp article reflects heavily on the principles of healthcare in the human service professional practice. The article references more nurses are getting into the political arena and this is especially important because they not only have the

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT WEEK 6 experience but the expertise in the healthcare sector. They are able to tell the government and population the ins and outs to a particular sector. In conclusion, it does not matter what an individuals health care policy issue is, one must have the ability to discern the type of framework that is to be used. If one is using the ethical framework, he or she must understand that not everyone shares their same ethics and they must be able to think outside of the box and relate to different cultures.

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT WEEK 6 Reference 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, ESV Ethics. 2011. In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved October 2, 2011, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ethics. Proverbs 31:30