Cultural Competency for the Healthcare Professional

About this course

Although there has been improvement in the overall health of people living in the United States, incidences of illness and death among minorities and the disabled continues. As such, healthcare organizations are recognizing the need to improve services for culturally and linguistically diverse populations. To do so, organizations and their healthcare professionals must understand cultural competence to provide culturally and linguistically appropriate healthcare services.

Learning objectives

• Define cultural competence
• Summarize various assessments and tools to help improve culture within an organization
• 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

17 sections · finish in any order across devices

1. 1

   Introduction

   Although there has been improvement in the overall health of people living in the United States, incidences of illness and death among minorities and the disabled continues. As such, healthcare organizations are recognizing the need to improve services for culturally and linguistically diverse popul

   4 min

2. 2

   Cultural Assessment

   Culture assessment is used to diagnose an organization’s current and desired culture. It includes analyzing an organization’s experiences, expectations, and philosophy, as well as the values that guide the healthcare professional’s behavior within an organization. In a workplace, culture is based on

   5 min

3. 3

   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

4. 4

   Disability (Language)

   Linguistic 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 are

   4 min

5. 5

   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

6. 6

   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

7. 7

   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 spirituality beliefs when confronted with difficult health-related decisions regarding patients.

   4 min

8. 8

   Clinical Considerations

   Baha'i

   14 min

9. 9

   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

10. 10

    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 differently shaped by their own individual experiences and interpretations of those experiences. Stereotyping uses p

    4 min

11. 11

    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

12. 12

    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

13. 13

    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

14. 14

    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

15. 15

    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

16. 16

    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

17. 17

    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

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