Why Do Filipino Americans Need Communication?

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Filipino Americans come from a self-governing country called the Philippine Islands. The Philippine Islands can be found in the Pacific Ocean southeast of China. “More than 7000 islands compose the Philippine Archipelago;” (Giger, 2013). Although, the 2 largest islands of Luzon and Mindanao make up most of the total land. The landscape of the islands consists of mountains and hills; they also are composed of volcanos. According to Giger (2013), Filipino Americans may be considered to be mild and kind, they are also submissive by nature because their desire to have a mutual balance between nature and people. They often appear guarded, being either aggressive or assertive; consequently they are often misunderstood and mislabeled as having …show more content…

For nurses to provide safe and culturally proficient care, there must be an understanding of the patient’s cultural needs. This may be achieved through communication. “Filipino Americans tend to use tone of voice to emote or to romanticize the language” (Giger, 2013). They pay attention to not only what you say but the tone of your voice and volume. Raising one’s voice implies arrogance while a gentle tone indicates a confidence. An excellent way to learn how they communicate is to observe how they interact with each other in places such as social settings, listening carefully also helps. Filipinos show their interest in you by asking you personal questions. They also give people nicknames and if you refuse to use the nickname you may seem snobbish or unfriendly. Some do’s and don’ts of non-verbal communication are avoid pointing your finger, it is considered to be rude. If a person touches your arm while they are talking to you, they are comfortable with you (Francia, …show more content…

Filipino American have strong emotion for their families and limit their personal space. They will often have the entire family in a hospital room, usually real close to the bed. Their family can consist of mother, father, siblings and children; but often they will include grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins. The caring nurse does not see this as too many people in the room but uses the family members as an advantage, by educating them to help the patient return to optimal health. Social organization. Birthing rituals of the Filipino are a little different than in the US. For example, for the last two months of a pregnancy, sex is forbidden and considered a taboo. Some foods are also taboo, such as squid and prunes because, they believe they will “make the baby wrinkled…and tangle the baby’s cord inside the mother” (Griger, 2013). If a patient is diagnosed with a disease, the family is usually consulted first. The family will decide to tell the patient or to protect the patient; however, a Filipino patient will want to die with dignity at

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