Health care from an Islamic prospective

Health care f= rom an Islamic prospective

BS Foad, M.D<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> 2011

We will discuss the following concepts:

1-Life is a gift from God that should be protected and safeguarded

2-Our health and ability to work and help others shoul= d be used properly

3-Providing basic health insurance should be a right f= or every citizen

4-Those who are blessed are obligated to help those le= ss fortunate

5-Each human being has dignity, and we should not judge people or look down at them

B= ecause they are poor or needy

Life is a gif= t from God and human life should be safeguarded and protected

God is our creator, and He gives life and takes it awa= y, and He provides and He controls everything.

Say: "O Allah! Lord of Power (= and Rule), Thou givest Power to whom Thou pleasest, and Thou strippest off Power from whom Thou pleasest: Thou enduest with honour whom Thou pleasest, and T= hou bringest low whom Thou pleasest: in Thy hand is all Good. Verily, over all things Thou hast power.

= ; Al-Imran 3: 26

"Thou causest the Night to gai= n on the Day, and Thou causest the Day to gain on the Night; Thou bringest the Living out of the Dead, and Thou bringest the Dead out of the Living; and T= hou givest sustenance to whom Thou pleasest, without measure."

= ; Al-Imran 3: 27

We learn from these verses:

-Allah controls our life and our destiny

-Allah provides to each person as He sees fit: = some have more money than others

-Our power and authority can change since Allah controls things, He can elevate

Some or take away their power.

We have an obligation to protect and safeguard life as we are God’s representatives on earth. Human l= ife is valuable to the extent that killing one soul implies killing all mankind, and saving one soul implies saving all of mankind. On that account: We ordained for the Children of Israel that if anyone slew a person - unless i= t be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he slew the whole people: and if any one saved a life, it would be as if he saved t= he life of the whole people.

&n= bsp; Al-Maeda 5: 32

This Qur’anic verse emphasizes how human life is precious and should be protected and safeguarded.

To protect and safeguard human life means good health and good medical care. If someone needs help such help and care should be available and provided. It = may mean providing medicine or an operation and obviously adequate nutrition. We take these things for granted here, but in many parts of the world these ba= sics are not available or denied to many especially the poor and disadvantaged. =

The Islamic center is sponsoring a bone marrow drive in response to the need for such effort. We are part of the community and must show that we care. By participating in this effort we may be able to safeguard the life of someone whose survival depends on bone marrow transplantation.

Each individual has dignity and certain rights. These rights include:=

1-Not to be afraid for his life or the safety of his family

2-That his possessions are to be protected and safeguarded

3-That he is able to speak and express his feelings and opinions, not afraid of

Reprisals.=

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said:

(Everything that a Muslim holds dear to himself should be honored and safeguarded by ot= her Muslims: his life, money and family) Bokhari & Muslim=

Our health= and effort and ability to help others should be used properly=

We are accountable for 4 main areas, and each one of us will be asked to accou= nt on the Day of Judgment how we used or abused God’s blessings. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) explained:

(On the Day of Judgment every person will be asked to account for 4 things:

-His whole life: what did he do wit= h it?

-His youth did he use this time pro= perly or abuse it?

-His money how did he earn it and h= ow did he spend it?

-His knowledge what did he do with = it?) Termedhi

Our youth represent the time when we were young and learning. Did we use our en= ergy and potential to seek knowledge and understanding, or use our health to help those who need our help; did we learn and think and reflect/ or did we abuse our health in drugs, alcohol, gambling or useless pursuits?

We learn from this Hadeeth that we are accountable regarding how we use God’s blessings: Do we safeguard our health and reach out to help oth= ers, or do we waste our life in habits that are damaging to our health and waste= our time in vain useless pursuits?

We are ordered by the Qur’an to work and to do good for Allah knows and appreciates our effort:

And say: "Work (righteousness): soon will Allah observe your work, and His Messenger, and = the Believers: soon will ye be brought back to the Knower of what is hidden and what is open: then will He show you the truth of all that ye did."

&n= bsp; At-Tawba 9: 105

If we do not safeguard our health then we are ungrateful to God for his blessi= ngs. If we resort to bad habits like alcohol, drugs or gambling, then we are destroying our health and wasting our energy and productivity. That is the reason that alcohol and gambling is forbidden in Islam:

O ye who believe! intoxicants and gambling, (dedication of) stones, and (divination by) arrow= s, are an abomination of Satan's handiwork: eschew such (abomination), that ye= may prosper.

&n= bsp; Al-Maeda 5: 90

Satan's plan is (b= ut) to excite enmity and hatred between you, with intoxicants and gambling, and hi= nder you from the remembrance of Allah, and from prayer: will ye not then abstai= n?

&n= bsp; Al-Maeda 5: 91

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said:

(Every intoxicant is khamr; and eve= ry intoxicant is forbidden) Muslim

(Khamr is what clouds the mind) Bokhari

(Whatever a lot of it causes intoxication, then a small amount of it is forbidden)

Ahmad

(Do not drink Khamr because it is the root of all evil) Ibn Majja

Khamr is liquor or alcohol

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) used to ask Allah for good health in his Du’a. He sai= d:

(Ask Allah conviction in faith and = good health; for no one can have anything better after conviction than good heal= th) ahmad.

The Prophet encouraged Muslims to be clean. He said:

(To be clean is half the faith) Muslim. He also encouraged Muslims to have a shower or= a bath on Friday (Bokhari & Muslim).

He encouraged Muslims to wake up early. This way they will be active and have a good temperament. If they woke up late, they will be lazy and of bad temper (Bokhari)

The Prophet (PBUH) warned Muslims against excesses even in rituals of worship. = In the story of the three men who came asking about the Prophet’s behavi= or at home, he said:

(I know Allah best and I fear Him t= he most amongst you; but I stand up in prayer part of the night and I sleep; a= nd I fast (optional fast) but not every day; and I marry. Whoever does not wish = to follow my way, he is not one of us) Bokhari & Muslim<= /p>

He said to Abdul Allah Bin Amrou: (Fast and break your fast; pray but not all night; because your body has rights over you; and your eyes has rights over you; and your wife has rights over you; and your visitor has rights over yo= u) Bokhari & Muslim

He encouraged Muslims to seek help when they got sick. He said:

(Allah did not send an illness till= He also sent the cure for that illness) Bokhari.

Providing = basic health insurance should be a right for every human being<= /b>

As human beings we enjoy certain rights such as being safe in our homes, not afraid for our lives or the life of our families. Another right is the abil= ity to work and provide for our families. Another right should be to safeguard = our health and to get treated when we get sick.

National health insurance is provided for in many countries and is considered a right for the citizens in their countries. However, in the USA the idea of a national he= alth service or universal health insurance has been denied and is fiercely oppos= ed by some.

Muslim doctors in Cincinnati have opened a free clinic that provides service for the indigent at no char= ge. Doctors volunteer their services and times as an expression of their faith = that they should reach out and help those who need their help.

Those who = are blessed should help those less fortunate

= ;

The Qur’an expresses such faith in what it calls Sadaqa or charity. It or= ders Muslims to give charity to their relatives as well as to the poor and needy= and to the traveler stranded away from home:

See they not that = Allah enlarges the provision and restricts it, to whomsoever He pleases? Verily in that are Signs for those who believe.

     &n= bsp;    Ar-Rum 30: 37

So give what is du= e to kindred, the needy, and the wayfarer. That is best for those who seek the Countenance, of Allah, and it is they who will prosper. <= /p>
     &n= bsp;    Ar-Rum 30: 38

The Qur’an explains that we are rendering this service to those who need = it because we seek Allah’s pleasure, and because those who are in need h= ave a right in our money, or effort that God blessed us with. In other words, G= od provides for some and He expects them to be good to those who are disadvantaged, poor or unable to care for themselves. When we do that we wi= ll succeed. But if we do not keep our part and refuse to help those who need o= ur help God can take away what we have, and then we become poor ourselves!

The Qur’an stresses that the poor and needy have a right in the wealth of those who are well to do:

And render to the kindred their due rights, as (also) to those in want, and to the wayfarer: = but squander not (your wealth) in the manner of a spendthrift.

     &n= bsp;    Al-Isra’a 17: 26

Each human= being has dignity; we should not judge people by how much money they have

God favors some over others regarding wealth. He gives more to some, and less to others. God is wise and there is a rationale for his decree.

Allah has bestowed= His gifts of sustenance more freely on some of you than on others; those more favoured are not going to throw back their gifts to those whom their right hands possess, so as to be equal in that respect. Will they then deny the favours of Allah?

     &n= bsp;    An-Nahl 16: 71

And:

He does propound to you a similitude from your own (experience):= do ye have partners among those whom your right hands possess, to share as equ= als in the wealth We have bestowed on you? Do ye fea= r them as ye fear each other? Thus do We explain the Signs in detail to a people t= hat understand.

     &n= bsp;    Ar-Rum 30: 28

In other words being rich does not mean that we are better than others who are poor, or being in a powerful position with authority means that we are bett= er than lowly people. It is what we do with our wealth and our authority that = will determine our fate:

It is neither your wealth nor your sons, that will bring you nea= rer to Us in degree: but only those who believe and = work righteousness, these are the ones for whom there is a multiplied Reward for their deeds, while secure they (reside) in the dwellings on high!

     &n= bsp;    Sa Ba 34: 37

Some people are tested with excess wealth and it could be their downfall. If they use their wealth for selfish pleasures and not help those who need their he= lp then they are doomed:

And let not those who covetously withhold of the gifts which All= ah hath given them of His Grace, think that it is good for them: nay, it will = be the worse for them; soon shall the things which they covetously withheld be tied to their necks like a twisted collar, on the Day of Judgment. To Allah belongs the heritage of the heavens and the earth; and Allah is well-acquai= nted with all that ye do.

     &n= bsp;    Al-Imran 3: 180

What b rings us closer to God are our character and our deeds, and how we use God’s blessings and if we are patient and persevere in the face of adversity:

O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a f= emale, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that= ye may despise each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Al= lah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full Knowledge and = is well-acquainted (with all things).

     &n= bsp;    Al-Hujerat 49: 13

Heal= th Care from an Islamic prospective

       BS F= oad, M.D 2011

Life is a gift from Go= d and human life should be safeguarded

“On that account We ordained on the Chi= ldren of Israel that if anyone kills a person, unless it be for murder or spreadi= ng mischief on earth, it would be as if he killed all mankind; and if anyone s= aved a life it would be as if he saved the life of all mankind” Al-Maeda 5= : 32

Protecting and safeguarding human life means good health and good medical care. If a person needs help such a help and care should be available and provided. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: (Everything that a Muslim holds dear to himse= lf should be honored and safeguarded by other Muslims: his life, his money and= his family; A Muslim should not look down or humiliate another Muslim) Abou Daw= ood & Ibn Majja

Our health and our ene= rgy and abilities should be used properly

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: (On the Day of Judgment every person will be asked to account for four things: his whole life, what did he do with it? And his yo= uth, did he use this period properly or abuse it? And his money, how did he earn= it and how did he spend it? and his knowledge, what did he do with it?) Termed= hi

“Say: “Wor= k: soon will Allah observe your work, and His Messenger and the Believers̶= 1; At-Tawba 9: 105

If we abuse our health= by using alcohol or drugs then we are destroying and not acknowledging GodR= 17;s blessings and we are wasting our energy and productivity. That is why alcoh= ol & gambling are forbidden

“O you who belie= ve intoxicants and gambling are an abomination of Satan’s handiwork; avo= id such abomination that you may prosper. Satan’s plan is to incite enmi= ty and hatred between you, with intoxicants and gambling, and hinder you from remembering Allah and from prayers; will you not abstain”<= /span>

Al-Maeda 5: 90 & 9= 1

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: (Ask Allah for forgiveness and for good health; for no one can have anything better after conviction than good health) Ahmad & Termedhi

The Prophet (PBUH) urg= ed Muslims to wake up early. This way they will be active and have a good temperament. If they wake up late, they will be lazy and of bad temper (Bokhari).

The Prophet (PBUH) war= ned Muslims against excesses even in rituals of worship. He said: (Fast and b= reak your fast; pray, but not all night: because your body has rights over you; = and your eyes have rights over you; and your wife has rights over you; and your visitor has rights over you) Bokhari & Muslim

The Prophet (PBUH) encouraged Muslims to seek help when they get sick. He said: (Allah did = not send an illness till He also sent the cure for that illness) Bokhari

Providing basic health insurance should be a right for every human being

As human beings we enjoy certain rights such as being safe in our homes, and n= ot afraid for our lives or the welfare of our families; and being able to work= and provide for our families. Another right should be to safeguard our health a= nd to be treated when we get sick. National health service is provided in many countries and considered a right for its citizens, but is opposed by some in this country. Muslim doctors should provide care for the indigent and volun= teer their services as is being done now in Cincinnati.

It is a moral right that those who = are blessed should help those who are less fortunate. The Qur’an expresses such help in what it calls “Charity”. Charity is not just giving money, but also involves our effort in helping those in need

“So give what is due to kindred, the ne= edy and the wayfarer. That is best for those who seek God’s pleasure, and they are the ones who will prosper” Ar-Rum 30: 38

What brings us closer = to God is not our wealth or our power, but what we do with God’s blessings to help those who are in trouble and need our help:

“It is not your = wealth nor your sons that will bring you nearer to Us in degree, but only those who believe and work righteousness, these will have multiplied reward for their deeds” SA Ba 34: 37

If we do not use God’s blessings appropriately we may end up loosing the= se blessings, for God has full control over all things:

“Say: “O A= llah the Lord of power; You give power to whom You please, and You strips of pow= er whom You please; You endow with honor whom You please and you brings low wh= om You please. In Your hand is all good; indeed You have power over all things” Al-Imran 3: 26