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Cultural differences and communication
Health literacy and effective communication
Cross cultural communication challenge
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Everything we do involves communication, rather it is verbal or non-verbal. We may not always intend to communicate, but we do through facial expressions, eye contact and many other ways. The issue with communication is not everyone always under each others way of communicating. Communicating with others can sometimes present barriers. Even in an ideal world, where everyone has the same common goal to stay healthy, how to stay healthy can be difficult communicating due to culture, language, demographics, gender, and other factors. Cultures also differ in their styles of communication, in the meaning of words and gestures, and even in what can be discussed regarding the body, health, and illness (Bohlman,2004). Cultural difference plays a role …show more content…
Department of Health and Human Services suggests cultural differences affect patients’ attitudes about medical care and their ability to understand, manage, and cope with the course of an illness, the meaning of a diagnosis, and the consequences of medical treatment(U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.,2016). Belief is something really strong and if a person does not believe in the information they are receiving they are more receptive to receiving that information. A definition of health literacy that does not recognize the potential effect of cultural differences on the communication and understanding of health information would miss much of the deeper meaning and purpose of literacy for people (Nutbeam, 2000). In public health we deal with different cultures, and we must make sure they understand the information. You have providers, who are on a higher educational level attempting to explain health information to someone who first language may not be English. Imagine the discomfort felt by not completely understanding your health information. The barrier of understanding and communicating effectively is an issue with health literacy and cultural …show more content…
Hispanic women also has lower rates of cervical cancer screening. This has a lot to do with belief and culture. Hispanics tend to seeking counsel from older members of the family and the older members feel home remedies can fix any condition. I would approach this group by becoming knowledgeable in their culture and being able to communicate. I would utilize the health belief model and theory of self efficacy. This theory focus on individual’s attitudes and belief as determinants of a group's behavior. This model considers family and friends and Hispanics are big on interpersonal relationships. Being that Hispanics are religious I would build a relationship with the
Racial and ethnic inequalities in healthcare results in non-white patients receiving lower quality care that White patients. Additionally, people who speak limited English encounter more communication issues with doctors and nurses that people whose primary language is English. (AHRQ, 2011). Consequently, as people with chronic conditions utilize more healthcare services, they are more likely to complain of issues with the doctor-patient relationship. They feel as though they are not able to participate in their care, their doctors do not allow them to contribute to their medical decisions and they feel like doctors are not disclosing all information related to care. People who encounter this type of cultural ignorance become dissatisfied with their treatment and overall healthcare experience and are at high risk for negative
There is considerable evidence of the Lee’s having both low print and oral literacy. The Lee’s spoke very little English; they also were illiterate in both English and Hmong (Faidman, 1997). Another contributing factor to their health literacy was their beliefs about medicine. Because of the dissonance between the Lee’s beliefs and the American medical system, it was unclear if the Lee’s fully understood the cause of Lia’s epilepsy or the purpose of her prescribed medication. Their motivation to learn may also have been a factor; they believed they already knew what caused Lia’s epilepsy and what healing she needed. Faidman describes cases of successfully communicating western medical ideals with Hmong people, but Lia’s case is not an example of effective cross-cultural understanding. The Lee’s low level of health literacy severely impacted their ability to successfully understand and administer Lia’s medication, which may have negatively affected her health outcomes. Some strategies to improve communication suggested by Egbert and Nanna (2009) that may have helped the Lee’s include using plain language that is culturally sensitive, spending more time with the patient to ensure understanding, and using a, “...teach-back method, in which patients repeat back to the provider the information they believe they have just
Latinos’ culture consists of tight-knit families that are multigenerational living together. Latino culture is a collectivistic culture that puts group interests over individual interests. When counseling Latinos, one needs to keep in mind the importance of family in their culture. Family members need to be a part of the counseling process. At times, group counseling with the whole family can help, along with involving the family in the treatment process.
Cobb, Torry Grantham, DHSc, MPH,M.H.S., P.A.-C. (2010). STRATEGIES FOR PROVIDING CULTURAL COMPETENT HEALTH CARE FOR HMONG AMERICANS. Journal of Cultural Diversity, 17(3), 79-83. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezp-01.lirn.net/docview/750318474?accountid=158556
The United States’ population is currently rising exponentially and with growth comes demographic shifts. Some of the demographics shifts include the population growth of Hispanics, increase in senior citizens especially minority elderly, increase in number of residents who do not speak English, increase in foreign-born residents, population trends of people from different sexual orientation, and trends of people with disabilities (Perez & Luquis, 2009). As a public health practitioner, the only way to effectively eliminate health disparities among Americans, one must explore and embrace the demographic shifts of the United States population because differences exist among ethnic groups (Perez, 2009). We must be cognizant of the adverse health conditions for each population and the types of socioeconomic factors that affect them. Culture helps shape an individual’s health related beliefs, values, and behaviors. It is more than ethnicity and race; culture involves economic, political, religious, psychological, and biological aspects (Kleinman & Benson, 2006). All of these conditions take on an emotional tone and moral meaning for participants (Kleinman & Benson, 2006). As a health professional, it is one’s duty to have adequate knowledge and awareness of various cultures to effectively promote health behavior change. Cultural and linguistic competencies through cultural humility are two important aspects of working in the field of public health. Cultural competency is having a sense of understanding and respect for different cultural groups, while linguistic competency is the complete awareness of the language barriers that impact the health of individuals. These concepts are used to then work effectively work with various pop...
pp. 197-205 Singleton, K., & Krause, E. (2009). Understanding cultural and linguistic barriers to health literacy. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 14(3). United Nations.
Going to a different country or area of the world can open up anybody’s eyes to see that culture makes a huge impact on the understanding and practices of healthcare that seem to be so common to other areas of the world. When a person lives in one country their whole life, that person may not realize how different the life they live is from someone in a foreign country. If a person is going to receive treatment from someone with a different cultural background, they should be expected to get treatment to respects their own culture. Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences having such a diverse variety of students has their own cultural competency definition that states “effectively and comfortably communicate across cultures with patients of differing backgrounds, taking into account aspects of trust in order to adopt mutually acceptable objectives and measures”. In the book Dancing Skeletons: Life and Death in West Africa by Katherine Dettwyler, the issue of culture and healthcare are greatly prevalent. Katherine Dettwyler herself goes to West Africa as an anthropologist and her horizons are broadened when during her research she comes in contact with how much culture has an impact on healthcare and everyday life.
The social custom of the Hispanic heritage is based on their lifestyle where the elders have the prestigious position in the Hispanic family because of their experience. When it comes to advice, they look for their family elders; for example when one becomes sick, he goes to family elders for support, advice, and console. The elder may advise safe, simple home remedial. The Hispanic believe that the men are the head of the family and makes all major decisions while the female role are equivalent because they are the maternal powerhouse in their homes. The women are said to be...
research on healthcare practices in a culturally diverse setting has established the importance of cultural awareness, competence, and diversity for healthcare workers.
Conaty-Buck, S. (2009). Unblocking barriers: Clearing the channel to improve communication between practitioners and patients with low health literacy. (Order No. 3364864, University of Virginia). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, , 121. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.uproxy.library.dc-uoit.ca/docview/305011452?accountid=14694. (305011452).
Cultural competence as defined by the American Medical Association acknowledges the responsibility of healthcare providers to understand and appreciate differences that exist in other cultures (as cited by McCorry & Mason, 2011). Moreover, it is the healthcare provider’s responsibility to not only become knowledgeable of other cultural differences, but to assess and adapt their skills to meet the needs of those patients (McCorry & Mason, 2011). Culturally competent healthcare providers recognize and incorporate cultural diversity, awareness, and sensitivity into the total care of a patient (Matzo & Sherman, 2015). Mr. L. is a Chinese-American man and it appears his culture is influencing his end of life (EOL) experience. It is essential
However, health literacy is more than just read and write; it is the ability to understand and able to use health information to make choices about their health (Benyon, 2014). Low health literacy can have detrimental effect on the health of the client because it may cause misunderstand of the medical label or health information. According to McMurray & Clendon (2015), health literacy divided into three different levels which are functional, interactive/communicative and critical health literacy. As for functional levels, it is the most general and fundamental level for the general public because individuals need to receive and understand the information of health such as risk of health decision, consent forms, health instruction or medicine labels. (McMurray & Clendo , 2015) Turning to the next level, interactive/communicative health literacy, mainly involved personal skills to spread health knowledge to the community, and also , people are able to influence social norm and help others individuals to develop their personal health capacity. Because of this, understanding of how organization work and resounding communication skill which can help to support others and knowing how to get different health services other individuals need (McMurray & Clendo , 2015). The third level is critical health literacy, mainly divided to
Bentancourt et al. (2005) allows asserts that there are three distinctive reasons why cultural competency is so very important for the American healthcare system. American is composed of a very diverse population, which mean healthcare providers will continual be exposed to treating individuals from various backgrounds and from various cultures; their beliefs regarding their health or healthcare may range widely. When patients have a deficiency in the English language, proper healthcare delivery becomes increasingly more difficult as they will present symptoms in the syntax of their culture and their first language. Also, research shows the communication between the patient and their provider directly correlates to their satisfaction as well as their responsiveness or willingness to follow the health provider medical instructions; this ultimately affects the patient’s health outcome (Bentancourt et al., 2005). It’s fair to say that a successful health outcome is also contingent upon the interaction of the health provider and patient. Reports generated by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) – “Crossing the Quality Chasm and Unequal Treatment, confirms that cultural competence that focuses on the care of patient through
Health literacy is a term not widely understood by the general population. It is defined as “the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process and understand basic health information needed to make appropriate health decisions and services needed to prevent or treat illness,” (About health literacy, 2014). A person’s level of health literacy is based on their age, education level, socioeconomic standing, and cultural background. Patients with low health literacy have a more difficult time navigating the health care system. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this group of patients may find it harder to find medical services and health care providers, fill out health forms, provide their complete medical history with their providers, seek preventative care, understand the health risks associated with some behaviors, taking care of chronic health conditions, and understanding how to take prescribed medications (About health literacy, 2014). It is to a certain extent the patient’s responsibility to increase their own health literacy knowledge. But to what extent can they learn on their own? Those working in the health field have been trained to navigate the health system and understand the medical terms. They have the knowledge and capability to pass on that understanding to their patients. Health care professionals have a shared responsibility to help improve patients’ health literacy.
The goal of improving health literacy is to empower individuals and community, to ensure that they feel comfortable and confident to make effective decisions by obtaining and understanding the relevant information. Strategies that applied in addressing health literacy should reflect respect, cultural safety, community or individuals’ needs and literacy level. Health professionals should facilitate and build capacity in promoting health literacy to allow the target groups have more control over their health and