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Sunday, November 1, 2009: 3:05 PM
Learning Objective 1: examine contemporary evidence related to cultural competency in nursing education and practice.
Learning Objective 2: describe the components of a model that can be used for education and practice to develop cultural competency.
Living in culturally diverse areas of the U.S. and abroad over the last two decades, the author has noted an inherent assumption that because the area is culturally diverse, health care providers must be culturally competent. However, direct observation in clinical practice has indicated that this is a faulty assumption.
A systematic review was undertaken to provide guidance for developing a useable practice model and teaching materials for academic and practice settings. Selections for this review were generated from a computerized search of nursing literature from 1990 through 2008; cumulative indexes; and the ancestral approach generated by the database search. Materials reviewed were limited to widely circulated journals, printed in English, with education or clinical implications for providing culturally competent care. Over 50 sources were available for review.
Summary:
Cultural competency in nursing practice is one of the issues that has taken the stage over the last two decades, evolving as a professional mandate for the delivery of quality patient care to a multicultural global community. Although there are models that address cultural competency, they fall short of providing adequate guidance for the education of students or practicing nurses who need to develop skills in cultural domains. This is particularly challenging when several cultural groups co-exist in a confined geographic area (i.e., Native American, East European, Hispanic, and others).
Conclusions:
Assisting practicing nurses and students to care for these diverse groups requires role modelling and the development of a conceptual model and teaching materials that can be used within the academic and clinical communities to develop sensitive and skilled practitioners. Since cultural congruency is not always possible, these approaches must address the diverse population requiring care as well as the diverse group of professionals providing care in ways that achieve the best possible outcomes.
A systematic review was undertaken to provide guidance for developing a useable practice model and teaching materials for academic and practice settings. Selections for this review were generated from a computerized search of nursing literature from 1990 through 2008; cumulative indexes; and the ancestral approach generated by the database search. Materials reviewed were limited to widely circulated journals, printed in English, with education or clinical implications for providing culturally competent care. Over 50 sources were available for review.
Summary:
Cultural competency in nursing practice is one of the issues that has taken the stage over the last two decades, evolving as a professional mandate for the delivery of quality patient care to a multicultural global community. Although there are models that address cultural competency, they fall short of providing adequate guidance for the education of students or practicing nurses who need to develop skills in cultural domains. This is particularly challenging when several cultural groups co-exist in a confined geographic area (i.e., Native American, East European, Hispanic, and others).
Conclusions:
Assisting practicing nurses and students to care for these diverse groups requires role modelling and the development of a conceptual model and teaching materials that can be used within the academic and clinical communities to develop sensitive and skilled practitioners. Since cultural congruency is not always possible, these approaches must address the diverse population requiring care as well as the diverse group of professionals providing care in ways that achieve the best possible outcomes.