Cuba is a country located in the western West Indies, the largest and furthest west of the islands, in the Caribbean Sea at the mouth of the Gulf of Mexico. Cuban culture is a rather interesting mixture of plethora different cultures that originated due to diverse Cuban history and backgrounds. There are certain peculiarities concerning Cuban death rituals, as well as some traits that can be found in a lot of other cultures. It is hard for some people to deal with sadness and grief on their own, so they are in need of assistance, and nurses can be of great help in this case, bringing comfort to grieving family of the deceased.
Cuban cultural rites and beliefs concerning death are vastly influenced by Native American and Spanish cultures and by Catholicism, therefore these rites and rituals do not have much outstanding features. Nowadays, as well as many years before, viewing of the deceased in Cuba usually takes place in front room and lasts for at least two days, it is done so that distant relatives and friends would be able to say goodbye to their loved ones. Members of the family stay with the body round-the-clock, never leaving it alone, until it is buried (Heller, 2001). The same rule applies even if the body is displayed in the funeral home. During the wake and the funeral itself, Cubans tend to get very emotional and sometimes even hysterical. At the wake, Cubans usually have a Catholic priest that says a rosary and later visitors join together in common prayer. At the burial, they usually have a full Catholic funeral mass and then the body is buried in a Catholic cemetery (Heller, 2001). There exists a tendency to have not much food at the funeral repast, as they are mourning. Cubans take mourning very seriously and can mourn a deceased person for a long time. Cubans and individuals of Cuban heritage tend to comfort their grief by their religious beliefs, by their faith in God and in their different patron saints. As the Catholicism vilely influenced Cuban culture and beliefs, they believe in heaven, hell and afterlife (Heller, 2001).
However, despite of the background and heritage, people that are dealing with grief and death of their loved ones, are usually in need of some help and definitely in need for comfort and consolation. Strong emotions, physical ailments, behavioural changes are inevitable in this situation and are an integral part of individual’s dealing with grief. People experience grief they are in pain and filled with sadness, and a nurse can try to bring them some relief. It is possible for any nurse to be suddenly called to support family or other siblings of a recently deceased person. It is necessary for a nurse to get all the strength and master every skill that they have in order to help them to deal with their loss. Nurses are usually called in this situation, as they are carers and people tend to feel comfortable …