Cultural Diversity

Cultural Diversity Bio-Med Academy

Culture, Ethnicity, and Race • Provide care to many different people Bio-Med Academy

Culture, Ethnicity, and Race Must be aware of the factors that cause each individual to be unique: • Physical characteristics • Family life • Socioeconomic status • Religious beliefs • Geographical location • Education • Occupation • Life experiences. Bio-Med Academy

Culture • Major influence on any individuals uniqueness. Bio-Med Academy

Culture Defined as: The values, beliefs, attitudes, languages, symbols, rituals, behaviors, and customs unique to a particular group of people and passed from one generation to the next. Bio-Med Academy

Culture • It is often defined as a set of rules, because culture provides an individual with a blueprint or general design for living Bio-Med Academy

Culture All cultures have four basic characteristics: • Culture is learned • Culture is shared • Culture is social in nature • Culture is dynamic and constantly changing Bio-Med Academy

Ethnicity • This is a classification of people based on national origin and/or culture. Bio-Med Academy

Ethnicity Share: • Common heritage • Geographic location • Social customs • Language • Beliefs Bio-Med Academy

Many ethnic groups in the United States • African American • Asian American • European American • Hispanic American • Middle Eastern/Arabic • Native Americans Bio-Med Academy

Ethinicity Within each of the ethnic groups there are numerous subgroups: • Own lifestyle • Own beliefs Example: Italians and Germans Bio-Med Academy

Race • A classification of people based on physical or biological characteristics: -color of skin -hair -eyes -facial features -blood type -bone structure Bio-Med Academy

Race • Race cuts across multiple ethnic/cultural groups, and is the values , beliefs, and behaviors learned from the ethnic/cultural groups that generally account for the behaviors attribute to race. Bio-Med Academy

Cultural Diversity • Culture, ethnicity, and race do influence an individual’s behavior, self-perception, judgment of others, and interpersonal relationships. Bio-Med Academy

Cultural Assimilation • Requires that the newly arrived cultural group alter unique beliefs and behaviors and adopt the ways of the dominant culture. Bio-Med Academy

Acculturation • The process of learning the beliefs and behaviors of a dominant culture and assuming some of the characteristics. • Occurs slowly over a long period, usually many years. Bio-Med Academy

Sensitivity • The ability to recognize and appreciate the personal characteristics of others, is essential in health care. Bio-Med Academy

Bias • Is a preference that inhibits impartial judgment. Example: Individuals who believe in the supremacy of their own ethnic group. Bio-Med Academy

Bias • Age • Education • Economic • Physical size • Occupation • Gender Bio-Med Academy

Prejudice • Means to pre-judge • A strong feeling or belief about a person or subject that is formed without reviewing facts or information. Bio-Med Academy

Prejudice • Regard their ideas or behavior as right and other ideas or behavior as wrong. Bio-Med Academy

Prejudice • Causes fear and distrust and interferes with interpersonal relationships. Bio-Med Academy

Stereotyping • Occurs when an assumption is made that everyone in a particular group is the same. Bio-Med Academy

Stereotyping • Ignores individual characteristics and “labels” an individual. Bio-Med Academy

Ways to avoid bias, prejudice, and stereotyping: • Be sensitive to behaviors and practices different from your own. • Remember you are not being pressured to adopt other beliefs, but that you must respect them. Bio-Med Academy

Ways to avoid bias, prejudice, and stereotyping: • Know and be consciously aware of your personal and professional values and beliefs. • Obtain as much information as possible about different ethnic/cultural groups. Bio-Med Academy

Ways to avoid bias, prejudice, and stereotyping: • Ask questions and encourage questions from others to share ideas and beliefs. • Evaluate all information before you form an opinion. • Be open to differences Bio-Med Academy

Ways to avoid bias, prejudice, and stereotyping: • Avoid jokes that may offend. • Remember that mistakes happen. Apologize if you hurt another person, and forgive if another person hurts you. Bio-Med Academy

Understanding Cultural Diversity • Health care providers must be aware of cultural and ethnic beliefs in order to provide holistic care. -physical needs -social needs -emotional needs -mental needs Bio-Med Academy

Areas of cultural diversity • Family organization • Language • Personal space • Touching • Eye contact • Gestures • Health care beliefs • Spirituality • Religion Bio-Med Academy

Card People A) What prejudices could the other cultures have about your culture? B) Does your culture hold any prejudices against the other cultures? Bio-Med Academy

Family Organization • Structure of a family and the dominant or decision-making person in a family Bio-Med Academy

Nuclear family • Usually consists of a mother, father, and children. • May also consist of a single parent and child (ren) Bio-Med Academy

Extended Family • Includes nuclear family • Grandparents • Aunts and Uncles • Cousins Bio-Med Academy

Extended Family • Asian • Hispanic • Native Americans Bio-Med Academy

Family Organization • Patriarchal -Asian and Middle eastern families • Matriarchal Bio-Med Academy

Learn about the Family Structure • Who are the members of your family? • Do you have any children? Who will care for them while you are sick • Do you have extended family? • Who will be caring for you while you are sick? • Who is the head of the household? • Where do you and your family live? • Was you entire family born in the US? Bio-Med Academy

Language • The health care provider must determine the patient’s ability to communicate by talking with the patient or a relative and ask questions. Bio-Med Academy

Language • Whenever possible find a translator • When providing care to people who have limited English-speaking abilities, speak slowly, use simple words, use gestures or pictures to clarify the meaning of words. Bio-Med Academy

Language • Avoid the tendency to speak louder. • Try to learn words or phrases in the patient’s language. • Must be aware of legal requirements for non-English-speaking patients. Bio-Med Academy

Personal Space • Close Contact Cultures: -comfortable standing very close to and even touching the person with whom they are interacting. Bio-Med Academy

Personal Space and Touch • Personal space, often called territorial space, describes the distance people require to feel comfortable while interacting with others. Bio-Med Academy

Close Contact Example: • Arabs are a very close contact group; they touch, feel, and smell people with whom they interact. • French and Latin Americans tend to stand very close together while talking. Bio-Med Academy

Close Contact • Hispanic-Americans are also comfortable with close contact and use hugs and handshakes to greet others. Bio-Med Academy

Close Contact • Women tend to stand closer together than men • European and African Americans prefer some space (approx. 2-6 ft) Bio-Med Academy

Contact • Cambodia members of the opposite sex may never touch each other in public, not even brothers and sisters. • The Vietnamese allow only the elderly to touch the head of a child, because the head is considered sacred. Bio-Med Academy

Contact Middle Eastern countries: • Men may not touch females who are not immediate family. • Men may shake hands with other men. Bio-Med Academy

Contact Native Americans: • Personal space is important. • Will lightly touch another person’s hand during a greeting. Bio-Med Academy

Contact In the health care setting: Taking a patient’s blood pressure. Bio-Med Academy

Contact • Do you prefer to do as much of your own personal care as possible or would you like assistance? • Would you like a family member to assist you with personal care? • Are any special routines you would like followed while receiving personal care? Bio-Med Academy

Cultural Diversity