Cultural competency is defined as a, “recognized and popular approach to improving the provision of health care to racial/ethnic minority groups in the community with the aim of reducing racial/ ethnic health disparities” (Truong, n.d., para 1). Cultural competency for an organization means, “creating practices and policies that will make services more accessible to diverse populations, and that provide for appropriate and effective services in cross-cultural situations” (Olsen, Bhattacharya & Scharf). Cultural boundaries between a doctor and patient can be a very difficult task to face. A simple misunderstanding could potentially lead to a completely wrong diagnosis, causing uproar and a tremendous amount of stress for every person involved.
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She might be worried that she will not be provided with the same care and attention as she would in the United States. In order to ensure that she gets the best care possible, a nurse should look at her medical history so he/she can gain more information about Sadana. In this situation, a nurse should devote more of his/her time to the patients like Sadana, who are from other cultures, since there is a higher chance of misdiagnosing them due to cultural and language differences. When Sadana went to the doctor complaining of a stomachache, they assumed that spicy food was the cause because she is Indian. However, she should have been put through a proper diagnosis instead of the doctor just jumping to conclusions. Also, asking basic questions to start with can help her describe her current condition in simpler words to try and make the language barrier less prominent. Although healthcare has made major advances in many different ways, there is still some discrimination on racial and ethnic minorities receiving lower quality care than …show more content…
Communication between a patient and a doctor/nurse is crucial when diagnosing a patient. In special cases when the patient is from a different culture, cultural and lifestyle background knowledge of that person can be very helpful. Sadana said that she is very comfortable talking to doctors and nurses of her Indian culture, but was worried about stating her condition when she was in Argentina. Another very important factor in addition to communication is that doctors/ nurses should respect the decisions of every culture. If they are not from the same culture as their patient, they will not understand the importance of each ritual and traditions. For some this may be difficult to respect, but “Ethics override personal morals and values” (Black,
She might be worried that she will not be provided with the same care and attention as she would in the United States. In order to ensure that she gets the best care possible, a nurse should look at her medical history so he/she can gain more information about Sadana. In this situation, a nurse should devote more of his/her time to the patients like Sadana, who are from other cultures, since there is a higher chance of misdiagnosing them due to cultural and language differences. When Sadana went to the doctor complaining of a stomachache, they assumed that spicy food was the cause because she is Indian. However, she should have been put through a proper diagnosis instead of the doctor just jumping to conclusions. Also, asking basic questions to start with can help her describe her current condition in simpler words to try and make the language barrier less prominent. Although healthcare has made major advances in many different ways, there is still some discrimination on racial and ethnic minorities receiving lower quality care than …show more content…
Communication between a patient and a doctor/nurse is crucial when diagnosing a patient. In special cases when the patient is from a different culture, cultural and lifestyle background knowledge of that person can be very helpful. Sadana said that she is very comfortable talking to doctors and nurses of her Indian culture, but was worried about stating her condition when she was in Argentina. Another very important factor in addition to communication is that doctors/ nurses should respect the decisions of every culture. If they are not from the same culture as their patient, they will not understand the importance of each ritual and traditions. For some this may be difficult to respect, but “Ethics override personal morals and values” (Black,