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Cultural Competence in the workplace
Cultural Competence in the workplace
Cultural Competence in the workplace
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research on healthcare practices in a culturally diverse setting has established the importance of cultural awareness, competence, and diversity for healthcare workers.
Cultural awareness is an individual’s ability to identify the differences in values, beliefs and norms, that may result from people’s diverse origins and backgrounds (Quappe & Cantatore, 2013). This is important since it allows an individual to build successful workplace and personal relationships with people from varied backgrounds (Quappe & Cantatore, 2013).
Further, I believe that it also allows individuals to avoid conflicts that could ruin relationships and goodwill among different parties.
Cultural awareness and sensitivity are two ….a nurse needs to ….. to deliver
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culturally appropriate healthcare in Australia. ( ….. cite) Cross et al. (1989) define cultural competence as “a set of congruent behaviours, attitudes, and policies that come together in a system, agency, or amongst professionals and enables that system, agency or those professionals to work effectively in cross-cultural situations”. Cultural competence and cultural awareness require a person to understand one’s biases and assumptions. If a healthcare provider is not aware of one’s prejudices, assumptions and cultural values, he or she would run the risk of imposing one’s beliefs, cultural values, and behaviours upon others resulting in possible conflicts which could ruin workplace relations between co-workers and patients. ….. ( cite ) My beliefs, values, and behaviours often define my services as a healthcare worker while my religious belief, exercise routine, appearance, and travelling affect the quality of my service. Religion is one of the strongest contributors to a person’s values and beliefs.
Most of the people in all the countries of the world belong to a certain religion. For example, in Australia 77.7% of people follow a certain religious tradition ("Religion", 2017). Therefore, as a healthcare worker, I need not only to know the implication of my personal religious beliefs but also that of the patients. Since, I do not believe in a formal religion, most of the people I encounter have a system of beliefs that is contradictory for me. Even though I do not believe in God, I ascribe value to spirituality. Due to cultural awareness and competence, I have developed certain religious values. I acknowledge the importance of religion and religious education imparted to me and others as it teaches good moral values, including respect for others. Most of the religions also inculcate compassion for the fellow human beings. Therefore, I appreciate the role of religion and always try to respect the people belonging to any religion. I believe that everyone is free to choose any religion, and his or her choice should not be a basis of discrimination and disregard for others. These beliefs and values would help me understand the religious beliefs of others while offering healthcare to them. For example, I can take into consideration the values of the patients of other religious denominations, their gender sensitivity, modesty, and diets. If I were not culturally aware and competent, I would impose …show more content…
my views on the patients, causing discomfort and hindering the possible recovery. Exercising and fitness are important for health while they reinforce most body processes.
Besides their health benefits, exercises also offer social comfort to many people. Moreover, regular exercising and fitness also keep me active. Therefore, I train regularly, and my fitness routine can only be disturbed by other social and professional activities. Fitness and yoga fill me with energy and stamina. This training is also helpful in concentrating, making me alert when serving my patients. The energy I derive from exercises keeps me alert. However, my values and behaviours could also hamper my ability to appreciate the problems of others, including obese people, whom culturally unaware people consider careless and
lazy. Fashion and personal appearance also reflect person’s cultural values. For healthcare providers such as doctors and nurses, it is important to look professional and adhere to the specified uniform. Many patients and their families believe that a smartly dressed doctor is more honest, expert, intelligent, and knowledgeable. Research conducted has shown that while the families consider the professional dressing and style of the doctors a positive sign, they disapprove of the doctors who have piercing and tattoos. The reason for this tendency is that their attire is a part of non-verbal communication, and it creates the first impression and is a core component of establishing trust. ( Johnson 2016) Therefore, I take good care of myself while I appreciate the importance of clothing and personal appearance. Safety principle always govern my choice in fashion; therefore, my professional belief makes me choose a safe fashion style. Becoming culturally sensitive involves not only knowing and learning about the other cultures but also to personally observing the diverse cultures and interacting with the people from different backgrounds. Travelling to different countries enriches our cultural knowledge, promoting a smooth transition from a mono-cultural perspective to a diverse cultural outlook. In foreign countries, one learns to overcome the cultural shock, observe the cultural practices, and experience what it means to be in a different cultural setting. It also helps people observe the political, social, and economic structures of other cultures, broadening their horizons and increasing the cultural competence. I have travelled extensively to many countries, which allowed me to experience them directly. Sometimes, it has helped me understand the views on health and sickness. My exposure to the different cultures will also positively affect my role as a healthcare worker and medical professional. I can put this knowledge to use while dealing with the patients from other countries. Living abroad has helped me appreciate the possible problems and stress one’s feelings while living out of one’s original culture. This event has taught me empathy to take all the possible steps to alleviate the suffering of the people. For example, merely greeting a Hindu patient in his or her mother tongue, appreciating the role of supplications they usually do, and the respecting their rituals and celebration days could not be learned without visiting India and participating in some of the fascinating rituals. Therefore, my beliefs, values, and traditions often define my professional behaviour. Appreciating cultural differences help make the working process more productive and inclusive. I hope to provide my patients with professional services to achieve maximum satisfaction of every group of patients.
Douglas, Rosenkoetter, Pacquiao, Callister, Hattar-Pollara, Lauderdale, Milstead, Nardi, & Purnell (2014) outline ten guidelines for implementing culturally competent care; knowledge of cultures, education and training in culturally competent care, critical reflection, cross-cultural communication, culturally competent practice, cultural competence in health care systems and organizations, patient advocacy and empowerment, multicultural workforce, cross-cultural leadership, and evidence-based practice and research. One specific suggestion I will incorporate is to engage in critical reflection. This is mentioned both by Douglas, et al. (2014) and Trentham, et al. (2007) as an important part of cultural competency. I will do this by looking at my own culture, beliefs, and values and examining how they affect my actions. I will use this information to better inform my day to day practice when working with patients with a different culture than my
Being culturally aware and knowledgeable is a must when working in any type of healthcare field. In our society today, we have an array of different cultures and making patients feel comfortable and at easy is our primary goal. Diversity training is something that is a must for each healthcare professional and should be the basis of our healthcare education.
The healthcare workforce is suffering critically due to its lack in diversity. As healthcare organizations are growing and the number of patients is increasing, so is the diversity of the patients. There are more minority patients are the number of minorities increase in the United States. The need for minority employees is crucial in that they are needed to help assist patients who have the similar cultural, racial, and ethnic upbringings. There are many barriers in healthcare workforce that are keeping minorities from reaching their full potential to become employees in healthcare, particularly upper-level leadership positions; as patients continue to become more diverse, so does the need of employees.
Cultural Competence is important for many reasons. First, it can help develop culturally sensitive practices which can in turn help reduce barriers that affect treatment in health care settings. Second, it can help build understanding, which is critical in competence, in order wards knowing whom the person recognizes as a health care professional and whom they views as traditional healer, can aid the development of trust and improve the individual’s investment and participation in treatment. Third, our population in the United States is not only growing quickly but also changing, cultural competence will allow us as educators and healthcare workers keep up wi...
From patients not wanting people of color to deliver care to them and patients from different religion having difficulties with the value of care. Healthcare organizations are working tremendously to develop cultural competence in it facilities. An article titled “Why Diversity matters in Health Care?”, defines cultural competence as “the ability of systems to provide care to patients with diverse values, beliefs and behaviors, including the tailoring of delivery to meet patients’ social, cultural and linguistic needs.” Diversity is one important aspect in the healthcare system because different people from different backgrounds, cultures and religions all seek care one or the other. Having this change in the healthcare system will really help deliver the quality of care to all patients. Strengths-based practices that will be effective in helping with healthcare diversity, will be to respect the differences of patients’ cultures and background. Also staffs have to be culturally sensitive about everything associated with the patients’ social identity too. Even with domestic violence that goes on among African American women, a patient who has been abuse can come into the hospital and staff must show respect and treat them as
An individual’s culture and belief may significantly impact the type of services they require. In addition, it may affect the time, place, and method in the delivery of health care
Management activities include educating the group and providing support for the acceptance and respect for various racial, cultural, societal, geographic, economic and political backgrounds.” Management should encourage and spearhead an increase in both ethnic and racial diversity amongst health care workers into management positions. According to Cohen, et-al, (2002) “by having medically trained health care policymakers who will accurately reflect the diverse American culture can eventually, have a substantial influence on the future of health care policy for all Americans”
There is a lack of conceptual clarity with cultural competence in the field and the research community. Cultural competence is seen as encompassing only racial and ethnic differences, and omitting other population groups who are ethnically and racially similar to providers, but are stigmatized or discriminated against, who are different in other identities, and have some differences in their health care needs that have resulted in health disparities. (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality,
Over the last several weeks we have learned that we live in a culturally diverse world. We have learned that it is important to acknowledge our own cultural values and beliefs while also realizing that others around us have their own beliefs. In order to provide culturally sensitive care, we must also realize the meaning of diversity and how it can also relate to the health care workforce. The purpose of this post is to define what diversity means to me. I will describe what some of the benefits of having a diverse health care workforce is while acknowledging that this could also provide some barriers in the nursing profession. I will conclude by considering my own diverse cultural background and experiences and how it might relate to the
Minnesota is a state with a rich, diverse, and evolving cultural landscape. In the past two decades, Minnesota has seen a significant increase in the number of children and families from culturally and linguistically diverse communities. Each of these communities is unique in their culture, values, and perceptions of child development and disabilities. A growing body of research reveals that significant health disparities exist across racial groups in early screening, identification, and diagnosis of developmental delays (CDC, 2014; Mandell et al, 2002; Shattuck et al, 2009; Zuckerman et al., 2014).
In order to provide a diverse healthcare environment, all employees in the healthcare system must understand the difference between culture and diversity. Naturally, culture and diversity mean the same thing. Culture, is certain behavioral characteristics that are learned and shared. Diversity is referred to a person who is of different racial background. Considering a population’s diversity and culture together helps establish culture in a healthcare
Globalization and immigration are two major forces increasing cultural diversity around the world. Technological advancements, increasing international travel, and ethnic strife in countries such as Syria are some of the factors contributing to this trend. As a result, most individuals live in a multi-cultural society and are trying to preserve their identity while interacting with people from varying backgrounds. The health care industry is not immune to increasing diversity and to adapt, organizations and employees must learn how to provide culturally congruent care (Emami & Safipour, 2013). In this post I will define diversity, discuss the benefits of a diverse workforce, discuss the barriers to attaining a more diverse nursing profession, and describe how my cultural background affects the nursing care that I provide.
In healthcare organizations, medical staff must conform to their hospital and their country’s code of conduct. Not only do they have to meet set standards, they must also take their patient into consideration. When making a decision upon a patient, medical staff must recognize religious backgrounds and spiritual beliefs. By understanding a patients’ beliefs and their belief system, a medical worker can give the patient their deserved medical assistance without overstepping boundaries or coming off as offensive. The practices and beliefs of four religions will be articulated throughout this essay to fully understand how religion can either help or hinder the healing process.
The key aspect of cultural awareness is understanding the differences between people from other countries, races, beliefs and values. Individuals who are culturally aware are accepting of other cultures; they also make an effort to understand other cultures. Others will label these cultures as “incorrect” owing to the fact that they lack the understanding of cultural awareness.
As each and every day goes by, diversity is becoming widespread throughout the world. As people are presented with culture, races, and different sexualities that differ from their own they may become uncomfortable. Cultural awareness is important because it can combat this unease. Cultural awareness is defined as the ability to recognize the different beliefs, values, and customs that someone has based on that person's origin. Being culturally aware allows a person to build successful and professional relationships in a diverse environment.