Culture Awareness
| Beliefs | Knowledge Base | Relationships | Values | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| African American | Reasoning based on union of opposites | Knowledge may be acquired through senses/affective means | Develop on a continuum and interconnection of all relationships over time | Developing and maintaining interpersonal relationships |
| Arabic | Reasoning based on belief that good health is a result of following religion | Knowledge through a relationship with a higher power | Develop based on belief that collective good is better than individualism | On the community and worship |
| Asian | Reasoning reflects separation of mind body from the physical environment | Knowledge develops when striving for transcendence of mind and body | Developed based on belief that everyone and everything has physical and spiritual connections | On balance within and between individual and group relations |
| European/American | Dichotomous reasoning | Knowledge is based on proof/evidence | Developed based on perceived need | On the individual, object, or the attainment of the object. |
| Hispanic | Reasoning based on union of opposites | Knowledge may be acquired through senses/affective means | Develop on a continuum and interconnection of all relationships over time | Developing and maintaining interpersonal relationships |
| Native American | Reasoning based on belief that people are innately good | Knowledge is through a relationship with a Greater Being | Develop based on idea that Greater Being is within all of us, everyone should be valued | On a relationship to Greater Being |
*note how this guide may be considered inaccurate for having the exact same qualities between Hispanic and African Americans plus not including emerging and other important minority groups. This is why having multiple cultural resources and training is very helpful…
Why focusing on Cultural Competency is Important?
In healthcare, cultural competency:
- Increases quality of healthcare services
- Improves patient outcomes
- Improves patient safety
- Improves patient satisfaction
- Builds trust with patients and communities
- Reduces health disparities and promotes health equity
What does it mean to be Culturally Competent in a Healthcare Setting?
Please refer to the following resource to review case studies of clinicians addressing cultural competency, suggested activities for increasing cultural competency in medicine, an assessment to uncover patients’ cultural beliefs and/or barriers, and tips for improving the caregiver/patient relationship across cultures:
Cultural Competency Resources for Healthcare Professionals
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Reaching At-Risk Populations in an Emergency
The Center for Health Design
Designing Safety-Net Clinics for Cultural Sensitivity
The Center for Social Inclusion (CSI)
Talking About Race Toolkit
CHAMPS
Health Equity Resources
Social Determinants of Health Resources
The Cross-Cultural Health Care Program
Cultural Competency Training of Trainers Institute
The Fenway Institute
National Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender (LGBT) Health Education Center
The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation
Compendium of Cultural Competence Initiatives in Health Care
Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) provides extensive resources for healthcare professionals on cultural competency, health literacy, and limited English proficiency. The following are two links for free online training and a library of cultural competency resources.
- A five-module training course that helps health professionals overcome language barriers, address cultural differences, and determine patients’ ability to understand care instructions
Unified Health Communication: Addressing Health Literacy, Cultural Competency, and Limited English Proficiency - Online cultural competency resources including reports, articles, websites, initiatives, workbooks, and clinical tools
Cultural, Language, and Health Literacy Resources for Health Care Providers
Management Sciences for Health
The Provider’s Guide to Quality and Culture
National Institute for Children’s Health Quality (NICHQ)
Implicit Bias Resource Guide
National Institutes of Health
Clear Communication: A NIH Health Literacy Initiative
Office of Minority Health, HHS
Improving Cultural Competency for Behavioral Health Professionals
Think Cultural Health (TCH)
Why Use Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) Throughout a Disaster?
SAMHSA-HRSA Center for Integrated Health Solutions
Serving Veterans: A Resource Guide
TRAIN Learning Network
Effective Communication for Healthcare Teams
Linguistic Services Resources
The following resources address implementing language and translation services and improving patient education and communication:
Association of Clinicians for the Underserved
Language Access: Understanding the Barriers and Challenges in Primary Care Settings
CHAMPS
Quick reference pocket cards presenting medical, dental, and pharmacy terminology in English and Spanish to aid in communicating with Spanish speaking patients
Clinical Reference Pocket Cards
CHAMPS
Compilation of resources for health center staff and patients on health literacy and plain language.
Health Literacy Resources
CHAMPS
Online patient education tools addressing a variety of cultures, ethnicities, and languages
Multi-Lingual Materials
Cross-Cultural Health Care Program
Cultural competency trainings, interpreter trainings, and research projects
About Cultural Competency
EthnoMed
Cultural profiles, health profiles, and patient education materials pertinent to immigrants to the U.S.
Culture-Specific Pages
Healthcare Intelligence Network
This report details educational and communication strategies for leveraging cultural differences to improve the quality and accessibility of healthcare. It is available for $97.00
Cultural Competency in Healthcare: Translating Differences Into Improved Quality and Access
Healthy Roads Media
Provides patient handouts and patient education in various media formats by disease/condition in many various languages
Healthy Roads Full Media Listing by Topic, All Formats, All Languages
HHS, Office of Minority Health
A guide to help healthcare organizations implement effective language access services (LAS) to meet the needs of patients with limited English proficiency (LEP)
A Patient-Centered Guide to Implementing Language Access Services in Healthcare Organizations
HHS, Office of Minority Health
Culturally competency programs with continuing education credits and other resources for physicians, pharmacists, and nurses to better meet the cultural and linguistic needs of an increasingly diverse patient population
Think Cultural Health
International Medical Interpreters Association (IMIA)
The database includes glossaries, dictionaries, terminology databases, anatomy atlases, nomenclatures, thesauri, lexicons, vocabularies, manuals, encyclopedias, and other word-based documents in the fields of medicine and healthcare in multiple languages
IMIA Terminology Resource Database
Kwikpoint®
Laminated pamphlets allow health professionals to communicate with anyone by pointing to pictures. Available for $16.49
Medical Visual Language Translator
Limited English Proficiency, A Federal Interagency Website
A reservoir of resources for implementing Executive Order 13166, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its subsequent regulations regarding language access
Limited English Proficiency
National Center for Farmworker Health, Inc. (NCFH)
A special issue of the NCFH Quarterly Newsletter focusing on the Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Service (CLAS) Standards, cross-cultural communication, and overcoming barriers to cross-cultural health care
Migrant Health Newsline, Issue 1, 2012
Refugee Health Information Network (RHIN)
Multilingual resources for providers and patients including patient education materials, emergency preparedness information, mental health resources, screening tools and more in many languages (including Amharic, Arabic, Burmese, French, Karen, Oromo, Nepali, Somali, Spanish, Swahili, Tigrinya, and more)
http://rhin.org/
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine
Health Literacy Measurement Tools
CHAMPS Population-Specific Resources
- Homeless & Public Housing Resources
- Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Resources
- Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers and their Families (MSFW) Resources
- Veterans Resources
Special Emphasis Program Organizations
Organizations offer a wealth of information on diversity-related conferences, research, observances, memberships, and educational opportunities. For more info, select the category below. Also read, Unlocking the Cultural Door to Mental Health Care by Psychiatric Times
- African American organizations + 44 Black Mental Health Resources & 10 Wellness Warriors for the Black Lives Movement
- American Indian and Alaska Native
- Asian American and Pacific Islander
- Federal Women’s Program
- Hispanic
- Individuals with Disabilities
- LGBT
- Student Outreach and Retention
- Veterans (VA for Vets) (not an ORMDI program)
