When Medicine and Faith Define Death Differently

March 11, 2016

(The Atlantic) – Abdirahman, a respiratory therapist in the intensive-care unit of Portland’s Mercy Hospital, is called into local hospitals three to four times a week for cases where members of Portland’s Somali community need help navigating the complexities of the U.S. health-care system. Often, his role as volunteer medical advisor involves explaining patients’ options for treatment, working through confusion around what it means to die under Western care, or helping them to reconcile certain procedures with Islamic tradition.