Cultural Diversity In Health Care Discussion Paper
Chapter 9 Cultural Diversity in Health Care This chapter focuses on the importance of cultural considerations for patients and staff. Although it does not address comprehensive details about any specific culture, it does provide guidelines for actively incorporating cultural aspects into the roles of leading and managing. Diverse workforces are discussed, as well as how to capitalize on their diverse traits and how to support differences to work more efficiently. The chapter presents concepts and principles of transculturalism, describes techniques for managing a culturally diverse workforce, emphasizes the importance of respecting different lifestyles, and discusses the effects of diversity on staff performance Cultural Diversity In Health Care Discussion Paper.
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Scenarios and exercises to promote an appreciation of cultural richness are also included. Learning Outcomes • Describe common characteristics of any culture. • Evaluate the use of concepts and principles of acculturation, culture, cultural diversity, and cultural sensitivity in leading and managing situations. • Analyze differences between cross-cultural, transcultural, multicultural, and intracultural concepts and cultural marginality. • Evaluate individual and societal factors involved with cultural diversity. • Value the contributions a diverse workforce can make to the care of people. Key Terms acculturation cross-culturalism cultural competence cultural diversity cultural imposition cultural marginality cultural sensitivity culture ethnicity ethnocentrism multiculturalism transculturalism Introduction Culture influences leadership from two perspectives. One is the way in which we meet patient needs; the other is the way in which we work together in a diverse workforce. Effective leaders can shape the culture of their organization to be accepting of persons from all races, ethnicities, religions, ages, lifestyles, and genders. These interactions of acceptance should involve a minimum of misunderstandings. Multicultural phenomena are cogent for each person, place, and time. Connerley and Pedersen (2005) provided 10 examples for leading from a complicated culture-centered perspective. For example, “3. Explain the action of employees from their own cultural perspective; 6. Reflect culturally appropriate feelings in specific and accurate feedback” (p. 29)Cultural Diversity In Health Care Discussion Paper.
Therefore culturecentered leadership provides organizational leaders, such as nurse managers and effective team members, the opportunity to influence cultural differences and similarities among their unit staff. Concepts and Principles What is culture? Does it exhibit certain characteristics? What is cultural diversity, and what do we think of when we refer to cultural sensitivity? Are culture and ethnicity the same? Various authors have different views. Cultural background stems from one’s ethnic background, socio-economic status, and family rituals, to name three key factors. Ethnicity, according to The Merriam-Webster Dictionary (Merriam-Webster Inc., 2013), is defined as related to groups of people who are “classified” according to common racial, tribal, national, religious, linguistic, or cultural backgrounds. This description differs from what is commonly used to identify racial groups. This broader definition encourages people to think about how diverse the populations in the United States are. Inherent characteristics of culture are often identified with the following four factors: 1.Culture develops over time and is responsive to its members and their familial and social environments. 2.A culture’s members learn it and share it. 3.Culture is essential for survival and acceptance. 4.Culture changes with difficulty. For the nurse leader or manager, the characteristics of ethnicity and culture are important to keep in mind because the underlying thread in all of them is that staff’s and patients’ culture and ethnicity have been with them their entire lives. All people view their cultural background as normal; the diversity challenge is for others to view it as normal also and to assimilate it into the existing workforce Cultural Diversity In Health Care Discussion Paper.
Cultural diversity is the term currently used to describe a vast range of cultural differences among individuals or groups, whereas cultural sensitivity describes the affective behaviors in individuals—the capacity to feel, convey, or react to ideas, habits, customs, or traditions unique to a group of people. Spector (2009) addressed three themes involved with acculturation. (1) Socialization refers to growing up within a culture and taking on the characteristics of that group. All of us are socialized to some culture Cultural Diversity In Health Care Discussion Paper