A REFLECTION OF MY TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY OF SELF 1

EMPOWERMENT

A Reflection of My Transformational Journey of Self Empowerment

Gamar Akalal Sugala

St. Paul University Manila

A REFLECTION OF MY TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY OF SELF 2
EMPOWERMENT
CA 3: Select one (1) verse from the letters of St. Paul to reflect on. Choose one which struck you

most, include the verse in your paper, explain why and what about the verse which caught your

attention

Being a Muslim, I must admit, I am blind with the teachings of Christianity. I have not

read the bible nor have not attended any Sunday Mass or religious gatherings. Although I was

born a Muslim with a strong faith in Islam, I have always practice RESPECT to every religion.

We may have different faith yet all are congruent with the teachings of love. Love is the

universal language that emulate compassion and respect to all mankind.

Upon tireless searching through the web on the verses from the letters of St. Paul, I came

across a familiar quote which I often hear in wedding vows and in love story movies where a

man proposes his undying love to a woman. In fact, I often used this quote during my younger

years. I was surprised to know that it was indeed a verse from one of the letters of St. Paul to the

church at Corinth with the context of unity:

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not

dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of

wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always

trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” -1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Indeed, love is unconditional. What struck me most about this verse is its powerful

message of love. It empowers our emotional desire to do good deeds, to reflect on our true

purpose in life, to value respect – to be all united with love.

A REFLECTION OF MY TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY OF SELF 3
EMPOWERMENT
We live in a world where loving others and love, in general, is often defined by movies

and romantic novels. True love is lacking until we look to the true source of love - God. God’s

love has always been patient. Regardless of how we are lost in our faith, God is always ready to

accept us, wholeheartedly.

Let me share a verse in the Quran. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon

him said:

‫سو ُل قَا َل قَا َل ه َُري َرةَ أَ ِبي َعن‬ ّ ‫صلّى‬

ُ ‫َللاِ َر‬ َ ‫ع َلى أ َ ُدلُّ ُك ْام أَ َو َال تَحَا ُّبوا َحتَّى ت ُؤْ ِمنُوا َو َال ت ُؤْ ِمنُوا َحتَّى ا ْل َجنَّةَا تَ ْد ُخلُونَا َال َو‬
ّ ‫سلّ َم َعلَي ِه‬
َ ُ‫َللا‬ َ

‫س ََل َام أ َ ْفشُوا تَحَا َب ْبتُ ْام فَ َع ْلت ُ ُمو ُاه ِإذَا ش َْيءا‬
َّ ‫َب ْينَ ُك ْام ال‬

“You will not enter Paradise until you have faith and you will not have faith until you love each

other. Spread peace between yourselves.”

If only people can disregard our differences, then this world could be a better place where

love could grow and foster. Each of us knows we are made to be loving. It is in our core, in our

very nature as humans. Loving others is not an option; it is a commandment. We need to love

others simply because we have been commanded to do so.

CA 4 - choose 1 core value which you uphold most and why? Cite specific experience or

samples
A REFLECTION OF MY TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY OF SELF 4
EMPOWERMENT

As one of the Five Pillars of Islam, charity plays an important part of the very fiber of my

personality. The generosity in giving something to people in need out of loving kindness

enlarges our heart and spreads the message of brotherhood and innocent love among us.

A common misconception that I always hear about charity is that the only way to give

one is to donate money. Let me share one hadith from Prophet Mohammad; “A charity is due for

every joint in each person on every day the sun comes up: to act justly between two people is a

charity. Your smile for your brother is a charity. Your good word is a charity. Your removal of

stones, thorns or bones from the paths of people is a charity. Your guidance of a person who is

lost is a charity.” This hadith simply indicates that charity comes out in many forms. From

simple gestures of compassion to providing money for the less fortunate. Indeed, Charity does

not only help others in need but also benefit us by increasing our blessings either in this world or

hereafter.

The journey of my life was not always smooth, but it is blessed. Despite of all the

hardships, God has blessed me with people that have helped me go through with my journey.

The unconditional love and compassion of my family, the kindness and loyalty of my friends, the

generosities of my relatives. All are engraved within me. I owe my success to every forms of

charity that have bestowed upon me. Thus, I am obliged to reciprocate the same to others.
A REFLECTION OF MY TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY OF SELF 5
EMPOWERMENT
CA 5 Ethical dilemma in your work place. Give it a short title, Short narrative, and resolution of

the case.

Despite of an established Patient Acuity Tool utilized in King Abdullah Medical City,

whereby the patient risk level dictates the nurse-patient ratio; staff nurses lingers their sentiments

of non-utilization of the Patient Acuity approach. This is mainly due to the ethical dilemma we

are facing from the exercised Gender Segregation in the hospital. This gender segregation is

associated with bioethical issues. Male nurse cannot be assigned to female patient because the

Saudi culture dictates this inhibition of not permitting them to do so. Therefore, there is a limited

range of function that a male nurse can perform but generated more workload to female nurses.

Justice in healthcare is giving what is due (Añonuevo et. al., 2000). Healthcare providers

should respond to the needs of the patient and has no right to refuse someone who is in need.

However, as Islamic ethics and rules have great control over the daily practices in Saudi Arabia,

this is a sensitive problem. Male healthcare providers face a huge dilemma especially in caring

for female patients. Alkabba, Hussein, Albar, Bahnassy, & Qadi (2012) discussed that caring for

female patients by male healthcare professionals is permitted in Islam only under special

situations.

In addition to gender segregation, manpower shortages ignited the frustrations of the

female nurses, putting more workload to the remaining staff. Although, the nursing

administration and the nursing education cross-trained staff to float nurses to units with higher

priority, still it altered the rhythm of the unit and created an environment of reactivity. Ethical
A REFLECTION OF MY TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY OF SELF 6
EMPOWERMENT
principles in nursing were not continuously upheld. Basic patient needs were not properly

addressed from the staff due to increased burden of nurse-patient ratio. One such indicator was

the constant sound of call lights from patients. Nurses only visit patients when carrying orders.

With all the alarms and call lights, the normal cycle of rounds was not only disrupted, it also

created difficulty for staff to finish tasks, putting patient safety in jeopardy.

To withstand this issue, we are currently implementing a process-improvement initiative

called TLC, adapted from an evidence-based nursing practice intervention programme called

Hourly Rounding. 5 P’s are incorporated in the hourly visit. These are Pain, Potty (asking patient

the need for assistance to bathroom), Positioning, Personal Items (Personal items are within

reach) and Privacy. An hourly rounding with the 5P’s checklist is posted in every patient rooms.

Nurses will countersign hourly. A growing body of research suggests effective purposeful

rounding can promote patient safety and reduce patient falls, improve patient perceptions of their

care, encourage team communication, and improve staff ability to provide efficient patient care.

Resolving the dilemma on gender segregation is difficult to be established. It involves

understanding the religious practices in the country as all practices are guided by their religion.

Strategic planning in staffing must be implemented to withstand the issue it created in the

workload. Increasing female staff to areas with highest priority to combat this can suffice the

burden from nurses.

A REFLECTION OF MY TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY OF SELF 7
EMPOWERMENT

References

Alkabba, A. F., Hussein, G. M. A., Albar, A. A., Bahnassy, A. A., & Qadi, M. (2012). The major

medical ethical challenges facing the public and healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia. Journal of

Family and Community Medicine, 19(1), 1–6. Retrieved from http://doi.org/10.4103/2230-

8229.94003

Felemban, E., O’Connor, M., & McKenna, L. (2014). Cultural view of nursing in saudi arabia.

Middle East Journal of Nursing, 8(4), 8-14. Retrieved from http://www.me-

jn.com/November2014/Cultural.pdf

Ware, J., Al Kaabba, A. F., Hussein, G. M. A., & Kasule, O. H. Sr. (2015). Professionalism and

Ethics Handbook for Residents: A Practical Guide [E Reader Version]. Retrieved

from http://www.scfhs.org.sa/Media/OtherPublications/Documents/Professionalism%20and%20

Ethics%20Handbook%20for%20Residents.pdf