Cultural Competency

Culture is defined as "the sum total of ways of living built up by a group of human beings and transmitted from one generation to another" (dictionary.com, n.d.). It affects how people view the world, including how they value health care, and determines a groups perceptions of health and illness and the ways in which treatment is sought (Ingram, 2011). Cultural competency can then be described as a set of similar practice skills, behaviors, attitudes, and policies that become rooted in a system, agency, or among providers and professionals. Leininger (2002) was the first person to bring cultural competency into nursing practice, stating that awareness of a patient's cultural perceptions allows the nurse to provide culturally appropriate and competent care.

There are numerous reasons why it is important for a nurse to provide culturally competent care. Ingram (2011) notes several different reasons, including increasing trust between the patient and the nurse, increasing patient compliance and health care outcomes, and decreasing conflict by assessing the patient's cultural values and including them in the plan of care. It also ensures that the nurse does not impose their own beliefs or health care biases upon the patient or be culturally offensive (Ingram, 2011). Cultural competency decreases racial and ethnic disparities in health care access and health outcomes.

Nurses and other health care professionals who respect and use information about a group's culture can be deemed culturally competent (Ingram, 2011). Improving cultural competency in an increasingly multicultural world has become an ethical obligation and professional nursing expectation. It is an ongoing process which demands commitment to lifelong learning and self-reflection. By being culturally competent a nurse can improve health care outcomes of a broader range of patients.

References

Dictionary.com. (n.d.). Culture. Retrieved from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/culture?s=t...