Cultural Competence & Care in Communities

Culturally competent health care within communities aims to eliminate disparities in health status among people from diverse cultural backgrounds. As suggested by Guzy & Petrie (2014, p. 81) cultural competence is by means of acquiring culturally appropriate information and knowledge then applying it within health care delivery. The process of developing cultural competence according to Brown & Edwards (2014, p. 24) requires cultural awareness, knowledge, sills, cultural encounter and desire.

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Community contexts including ethnicity and lifestyle are examples of community settings. By being accepted into the community, nurses can assist in creating better health practices. This is a crucial foundation for a student nurse to have an understanding of and with a career goal of community based nursing, I am especially interested and keen to endeavour to learn more about care in communities.

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Within the community, barriers and enablers encountered include sub-cultures (groups that have values and norms distinct from majority [Miller-Keane (2003)]), homelessness, illicit drug users, conscientious objection to immunisation, chronic health conditions and rural and remote settings.

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A recent article by Gurjeet & Hurriyet (2012) identified barriers affecting cultural competent care for  CALD (Culturally and Linguistically Diverse) communities within Australia. Barriers identified included low health literacy, impaired language skills, lack of interpreters within communities, insufficient confidence in their own abilities/skills, and traveling distances required to access health, especially in rural and remote areas.

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Nurses play a pivotal role in bridging the gap for sub cultural groups within the community. Including people from diverse backgrounds in the decision making process, is an important strategy when delivering cultural health care services (Heidke, 2015). Additionally, nursing practitioners utilise effective tools such as the Gibbs Reflection Tool (Gibbs, 1998) which if used in context within cultural diverse care clients with complex needs, can improve knowledge, skills and ability to meet demands in a culturally diverse health care setting.

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References

Brown, D., & Edwards, H. (2013). Lewis's medical-surgical nursing (3rd ed.). Chatswood, N.S.W.: Elsevier Australia.

Gibbs, G. (1988) Learning by Doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Oxford: Oxford Polytechnic Further Education Unit.

Guzys, D., & Petrie, E. (2013). An Introduction to Community and Primary Health Care in Australia. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Miller - K.  (2003). Encyclopedia & Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, & Allied Health Seventh Edition.  Retrieved January 16 2016 from http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/subculture

O'Mara, B., Gill, G., Babacan, H., & Donahoo, D. (2011). Digital technology, diabetes and culturally and linguistically diverse communities: A case study with elderly women from the Vietnamese community. Health Education Journal, 71(4), 491-504. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0017896911407054