Cultural Competency - 4 Contact Hours

About this course

Cultural competence is a process in which healthcare professionals strive to effectively work within the cultural context of an organization by respecting another's difference and not allowing biases to influence the care that is provided. It essentially requires the knowledge, skills, and understanding of all diverse groups, as it is the healthcare professional’s moral and ethical commitment to patients, families, and communities. To improve cultural and linguistically appropriate care, organizations and their healthcare professionals must understand cultural competence, and conduct self-assessments to identify bias, values, and beliefs of the healthcare professional.

Learning objectives

• Define cultural competence
• Summarize effective, validated self-assessment tools to assess for cultural competency within an organization
• Recognize how personal history, values, and beliefs can influence perceptions of communication abilities and patterns
• Attribute how biases and stereotypes in various subgroups can influence the care received by patients within those groups
• Review federal laws that relate to healthcare provided to disadvantaged populations
• Recognize how personal history, values, and beliefs can influence perceptions of communication abilities and patterns

Course outline

25 sections · finish in any order across devices

1. 1

   Introduction

   Nurses are at the frontline of patient care and are often the first healthcare professionals that patients and their families encounter when they enter the healthcare system. Given that 40% of the United States population currently consists of either first-generation Americans or immigrants, and in

   4 min

2. 2

   Defining Cultural Competence

   Cultural competence is the integration and transformation of knowledge about individuals and groups of people into specific standards, policies, practices, and attitudes, which can be used in appropriate cultural settings to increase the quality of care provided.

   4 min

3. 3

   National Standards for Cultural Competence

   The United States Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of Minority Health (OMH) responded to the need to ensure that all people entering the healthcare system receive equitable and effective treatment in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner by developing the National S

   4 min

4. 4

   Cultural Assessment

   The National Center for Cultural Competence (NCCC) provides a variety of resources to organizations, trainers, families, and communities, including checklists, guides, and policy briefs that discuss the importance of policies, procedures, practices, and structures to support cultural and linguistic

   7 min

5. 5

   Self-Assessment

   A self-assessment involves assessing one’s own culture, bias, values, and assumptions, and how they influence one’s perceptions and behaviors.17 There are numerous benefits to a self-assessment, as it can lead to the development of an organizational plan with clearly defined short-term and long-term

   4 min

6. 6

   How to Plan and Implement a Self-Assessment

   The process of self-assessment is as important as the outcome. The following steps can be used in self-assessment processes:17,19

   4 min

7. 7

   Age

   Ageism is the specific use of negative language and derogatory images to discriminate against a certain population group. ¹ For instance, an image of an older man with a walking cane may symbolize an elderly man with a disability, when in fact, that is not the case. These images can shape our social

   4 min

8. 8

   Children

   Cultural competency is an important component in early childhood development. It is important that children learn how to respect and accept others with different backgrounds and cultures, which can prevent implicit bias, discrimination, and prejudices later in life. The best way for children to mode

   4 min

9. 9

   Disability (Language)

   Linguistics refers to language. Linguistic competence is the capacity of an organization and its healthcare professionals to communicate effectively and in a manner that is easily understood by diverse groups including people with limited English proficiency, those who have low literacy skills or ar

   4 min

10. 10

    Military

    Military cultural competence pertains to a healthcare professional’s attitudes, understanding, and behaviors when working with service members and veterans. This form of cultural competence originated from the medical care of wounded members in battlefields, field hospitals, and military hospitals.

    4 min

11. 11

    Race and Ethnicity

    The concept of cross-cultural medicine emerged in the 1970s after insight surrounding cultural and linguistic barriers to healthcare. These healthcare disparities reached far beyond immigrant populations and were noted to include racial and ethnic minorities. Race is described as a population of peo

    4 min

12. 12

    Religion and Spirituality

    Religion and spirituality are important factors in many patients seeking care. Although they are important, healthcare professionals may not consider religious and spiritual beliefs when confronted with difficult health-related decisions regarding patients.

    4 min

13. 13

    Clinical Considerations

    Baha'i

    14 min

14. 14

    Sexual Orientation

    Caring for members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer/questioning (LGBTQ) community involves understanding the community and avoiding unconscious and perceived biases. Historically, members of the LGBTQ community have experienced a lot of challenges, and health professionals must b

    4 min

15. 15

    Gender Dysphoria

    A diagnostic label included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) to describe when a person identifies as a different gender than the one they were assigned based on their birth sex.

    4 min

16. 16

    QPOC/ QTPOC

    Abbreviation for “queer people of color” or “queer and trans people of color.”

    4 min

17. 17

    Transmasculine

    A trans person whose gender expression is primarily “masculine.” Often includes trans, transgender and/or transexual men.

    4 min

18. 18

    Cultural Competence Versus Stereotyping

    Cultural competence requires the healthcare professional to consider how values and norms are uniquely shaped. Even when people share similar cultural backgrounds, their values may be shaped differently by their own individual experiences and interpretations of those experiences. Stereotyping uses p

    4 min

19. 19

    Consequences of Cultural Competence Deficiencies

    If healthcare professionals and organizations do not work together to provide culturally competent care, patients may receive poor quality care, have negative health consequences, and be dissatisfied with the care they receive.

    4 min

20. 20

    Developing Cultural Competence

    Developing cultural competence is an ongoing process. It involves the healthcare professional’s self-awareness and cultural humility, and it may require them to recognize their own inadequacies as it relates to languages and cultures of patients. The healthcare professional will need to seek out cul

    4 min

21. 21

    Federal Legislation

    Organizations and their healthcare professionals must follow federal legislation as it relates to healthcare, for example, when offering care to patients, an organization must provide access to services, make accommodations to facilitate participation by individuals with disabilities, have interpret

    4 min

22. 22

    Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

    2006 IDEA made significant steps toward addressing problems with inappropriate identification and disproportionate representations by race and ethnicity of children with disabilities. A provision was added requiring states to review ethnicity data in addition to race data to determine the presence o

    4 min

23. 23

    Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA)

    Title II of HIPPA, known as the Administrative Simplification provisions, requires the establishment of national standards for electronic health care transactions and national identifiers for providers, health insurance plans, and employers. This act gives individuals the right to privacy. The provi

    4 min

24. 24

    Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

    The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is intended to protect people with disabilities and guarantee access to and participation in society. The statute is specifically directed at employment, public accommodations, public services, transportation, and telecommunication. To be protected by the AD

    4 min

25. 25

    Conclusion

    Healthcare professionals have an obligation to provide culturally competent care to patients, as it reduces biases, and improves patient outcomes and satisfaction with healthcare services. To help the healthcare professional meet this obligation, organizations must identify deficiencies in competenc

    4 min

This course satisfies

Requirement summaries come from our state requirement records. Always confirm details with your board before you renew.

References and resources

• Ageism: Why cultural competency of aging matters. (2018, May 24). International Network for Critical Gerontology. https://criticalgerontology.com/ageism-cultural-competency-keyes-dicke/
• Chapter 27. Working together for racial justice and inclusion | Section 7. Building culturally competent organizations | Main section | Community tool box. (n.d.). Community Tool Box. https://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/culture/cultural-competence/culturally-competent-organizations/main#:~:text=%20Building%20Culturally%20Competent%20Organizations%20%201%20Valuing,of%20difference%0AMany%20factors%20can%20affect%20cross-cultural...%20More%20
• Cultural competence in the care of LGBTQ patients - NCBI bookshelf. (2020, October 9). National Center for Biotechnology Information. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK563176/
• (n.d.). DigitalCommons@EMU. https://commons.emich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1042&context=gabc
• Freund, R. R., & Gill, C. S. (2018). Understanding the development of spirituality, religion, and faith in the client’s life. Spirituality and Religion in Counseling, 51-63. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315211046-4
• Interpersonal LGBTQ communication. (2021). Communication. https://doi.org/10.1093/obo/9780199756841-0262
• Mayfield, V. (2020). Cultural competence now: 56 exercises to help educators understand and challenge bias, racism, and privilege.
• (n.d.). National Health Law Program - Attorneys | National Health Law Program. https://healthlaw.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/CulturalCompetency.052306.pdf
• Please wait... (n.d.). Please Wait... | Cloudflare. https://patientengagementhit.com/news/what-does-cultural-competence-mean-for-healthcare-providers
• Racial/Ethnic populations - Improving cultural competence to reduce health disparities - NCBI bookshelf. (n.d.). National Center for Biotechnology Information. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK361128/
• Religious competence as cultural competence. (n.d.). PubMed Central (PMC). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4230460/
• Slayter, E. (2021, November 10). What do you know about disability cultural competence? SWHELPER. https://swhelper.org/2021/11/19/what-do-you-know-about-disability-cultural-competence/
• Stereotypes & bias in cultural competence training. (2018, October 8). Commisceo Global Consulting Ltd. https://www.commisceo-global.com/blog/stereotypes-bias-in-cultural-competence-training
• Supplemental material for the initial development and validation of the racial socialization competency scale: Quality and quantity. (2019). Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/cdp0000316.supp
• Tangen, J. L., & Felton, A. D. (2018). Spirituality and existentialism. Spirituality and Religion in Counseling, 83-97. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315211046-6
• And, M. (2020). Finding the path to attitude change on transgender rights. Transforming Prejudice, 54-82. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190068882.003.0003
• Burchfield, W. J. (2015). Understanding lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender cultural competency training in hospitals.
• (n.d.). Cultural and Linguistic Competence Health Practitioner Assessment (CLCHPA). https://www.clchpa.org/
• Cultural competence: Assessment and education resources for ... : Home healthcare now. (n.d.). LWW. https://journals.lww.com/homehealthcarenurseonline/Fulltext/2014/05001/Cultural_Competence__Assessment_and_Education.3.aspx
• Kachen, A., & Pharr, J. R. (2020). Health care access and utilization by transgender populations: A United States transgender survey study. Transgender Health, 5(3), 141-148. https://doi.org/10.1089/trgh.2020.0017
• Olsen, M. E. (2018). Healthcare of lesbian, bisexual, and transgender patients. Gynecologic Care, 27-38. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108178594.005

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