What Is Cultural Competency

Cultural competency refers to the ability to recognize and understand values, mindsets, and behaviors of different cultures without judgment. This form of acceptance is still a developing skill in the United States health care system. Place of birth, family, socioeconomic status, education, and personal experience influence a culture, but can also serve as an access to care barrier. Perceived need for treatment and health literacy should be considered as it varies with each culture. Patients of Hispanic American, African American, Asian American, and Native American origin often experience poor oral health, compared to white Americans. Minorities have an increased risk for dental caries, periodontal disease, and other oral conditions. Health care providers must be aware of health disparities in minority communities, in order to provide quality care for all patients.

A person’s culture is an assembly of their thoughts, practices, beliefs, values, traditions, relationships, and roles (Geurink, 2012, p. 267). An expected behavior is associated with a group of people who share an ethnicity, race, language, and religion (p. 267). Culture, a specific set of practices and behaviors, implies the

Research conducted in 1999-2004, by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), reflected 40% of African American and Mexican American adults ages 35-44 years had untreated caries (Geurink, 2012, p. 125). These statistics are comparable to the 23% of white adults with untreated decay during the same time period (p. 125). The national survey indicate that adults with less than a high school education were three times more likely to have tooth decay than adults with a college degree (p. 125). Trends of increased dental caries in undereducated and underserved minorities predict consequences of dental abscess, pain, costly treatment, and tooth loss (p.