(Half Bell)
(Bell)
Dear Thay, our friend said
Several people here have had family members' lives ended, killed
by the negligence of doctors and nurses.
This has caused much distress and suffering to the remaining family members.
How do we change these systems?
Letters written are ignored.
Meetings with hospital personnel lead to nothing.
What can we do so these negative behaviours and attitudes
of health personnels will change
toward the elderly, the disabled and everyone else?
(Half bell)
(Bell)
The other day we spoke about a place of healing
and the hospital is a place of healing.
And we count on technology, medicines and the skills of doctors and nurses.
But if health professionals are not happy
are not calm enough,
are not relaxed enough.
If health professionals suffer,
it means that they cannot serve
people and patients the best way that they can.
So if it happens that you are the director of a hospital,
if you are the minister of health,
if you are in a field of health,
then you may like to meditate on that.
You may invite some of your colleagues to sit down,
and look deeply into the topic:
how to bring a spiritual dimension into the life of health professionals.
We already have offered retreats for health professionals.
We know they suffer a lot.
We also have offered retreats for psychotherapists,
because many therapists suffer also a lot.
If they suffer too much, they cannot help the patients
and maybe they could do harm to their patients.
That is why bringing that spiritual dimension
into our professional life is very important.
If you do not have enough serenity, calm, patience, compassion,
you cannot exercise our skills well.
We can harm people
and they may sue us.
So both patients and health professionals suffer,
not only patients.
So when you see members of your family suffer
because of the way health professionals have taken care of your beloved ones,
You should also see the sufferings of the health professionals'.
And you react with compassion and understanding.
instead of trying to punish them,
you try to help them.
You can use loving speech and other means.
You have to create a public opinion,
a kind of collective mindfulness
so that the people, the population
become aware of that.
That is also the practice of mindfulness:
Helping people in your country
become aware of that problem.
Mindfulness of what is going on.
And make enough pressure
even if it comes from mindfulness.
So that we are strong enough in order to push for change,
in a circle of health activists.
There must be ways to do that.
And if you are so busy,
you don't have the time to sit down
and make up the strategies of how
to create that kind of collective awareness
that will help people
and force people to change
because health professionals like doctors and nurses,
they may be victims of that kind of institutions,
the way they organise.
And maybe there are those of them who want to change,
but do not have the power to change.
So we should help.
(Half Bell)
(Bell)