Cultural Competency in Practice
The
need for cultural competency pertains to both individual clinicians
and staff as well as to the health care organization as a whole.
This need is not new, but it has received greater emphasis recently
as a result of several factors. The latest US Census data shows
that America is becoming more culturally diverse. Rural areas as
well as urban areas are increasingly composed of people for whom
English is not their first language, and who hold to behaviors,
practices, and beliefs that differ from the majority. Disparities
in health have been documented along racial and ethnic lines, underscoring
the urgent need to develop care that competently reaches all people.
Legally, the health care community is expected to communicate with
patients in their preferred language (Title VI, Civil Rights Act).
Accrediting bodies such as JCAHCO have added cultural competency
to review criteria. Finally, there is an increasing recognition
that compliance on the part of the patient is related
to cultural competence on the part of the clinician.
Cultural competency in practice requires that one be a continual
learner. Cultural humility and a desire to better understand your
patients are essential. Models for improvement suggest that we often
make the greatest progress by taking a series of small steps and
pausing frequently to assess if that step is a step in the right
direction. The focus of this article is clinical practice, but the
organization as a whole must also work towards incorporating cultural
competency; the resources that follow address this need. To start
with, consider adapting history taking to include cultural issues,
understand your patients’ perceptions of health and illness,
their dependence on family systems, and their use of faith and tradition
in healing. Recognize that stressful circumstances may alter your
patient’s ability to cope, resulting in a preference for the
ways of her native culture.
MCN recognizes that the migrant population has unique needs and characteristics that must be addressed in order to optimize health outcomes. Central to this understanding is the role of cultural factors in determining wellness, illness, adherence, and health status improvement. While clinicians are trained in many skill sets, most have not received formal education in the area that may profoundly impact their success in all other areas: cultural competency. Accordingly, MCN has developed a expert set of resources and trainings in cultural competency geared for clinical practice.
Clinical Excellence
Resource Categories
Featured Resources
Rural Women's Health Project
The RWHP, founded in 1992, develops community-based educational materials. independently as well as in collaboration with other grass-roots organizations. Their projects focus on the health issues of rural women and their families, with a special emphasis on the challenges faced by Spanish-speaking farmworking families.
A Primer for Cultural Proficiency: Towards Quality Health Services for Hispanics
AAP's Community Pediatrics
Offers a collection of resources on cultral competence.
BARNGA
Barnga is a staff simulation activity that emphasizes the power of subtle differences in culture as they effect communication,
Center for Enlightened Medicine
Center for Holistic Pediatric Education and Research
Communicating Effectively Through an Interpreter (video)
Cultural Competency CME Portal
This site, sponsored by the Office of Minority Health (OMH), offers the latest resources and tools to promote cultural competency in health care. You may access free online courses accredited for continuing education credit as well as supplementary tools to help you and your organization promote respectful, understandable, and effective care to your increasingly diverse patients.
Immigrants as Younger and More Diverse
The figures show that immigration trends are forming a unique generational divide: those immigrants over 40 are largely white, while those under 40 are increasingly Hispanic, Asian and from other minority groups.
MCN Module on Cultural Competency in Practice
Module Two of MCN's educational offering "Adolescent Farmworkers at Risk" focuses on cultural competency in practice. Earn continuing education creditswhile learning more about this important topic.