Examples Of Cultural Sensitivity In Nursing

Cultural Competence and Building Therapeutic Nurse-Patient Relationships

Memorial University of Newfoundland

Beth Fraser

The application of cultural competence in nursing practice was first described by Madeline Leninger (1970) as she coined the term ‘cultural sensitivity’ to describe the process of being attentive to the values, beliefs, attitudes and behaviours of patients. “Culture has been defined as socially transmitted patterns of human behaviour which include communication styles, actions, ways of thinking, values, beliefs and institutions of ethnic, racial, religious or social groups” (). The application of culturally competent care in nursing is important because it may impact quality of patient care and the development

They include: cultural awareness, cultural knowledge, cultural skills, cultural sensitivity, and dynamic process (Cai, 2016). Cultural awareness has been defined as an exploration of one’s own culture, including practices, lifestyle, values and beliefs (Campinha-Bacote, 1999; Leininger & McFarland, 2006). This process promotes acknowledgement of one’s own biases, stereotypes, prejudices or ethnocentric views and recognition of similarities and differences between one’s own culture and the culture of others (Purnell, 2012). Cultural knowledge has been defined as a deliberate process to seek educational information to enhance one’s knowledge of cultures different from their own (Campinha-Bacote, 1999). Acquisition of cultural knowledge is advantageous as it involves preparation prior to an encounter that promotes actions that are cognizant of the client’s culture (Zander, 2006). As nurses, the proficiency of cultural skills that can be utilized in practice also contribute to cultural competence. Cultural skills include, the collection of the client’s cultural data relevant to the health problem, physical assessments that incorporate cultural variations, utilizing effective communication techniques (verbal and non-verbal) with consideration of cultural differences (Campinha-Bacote, 1999; Matteliano & Street, 2012). Finally, Cai (2016) suggest that acknowledging the “dynamic process” of cultural competences is critical because culture varies greatly by person and situation and thus should not be considered as a static situation (Purnell,