cultural competency

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Every patient is different in their own unique way. It is our job as nurses to address this to be able to deliver patient-centered care. Part of addressing a patient’s needs is to be culturally competent. When a nurse is culturally aware of their patient’s preferences, they can provide more individualized care.

By providing individualized care, nurses can better help patients achieve desired health outcomes. The ANA website has a good list of questions to ask patients in order to learn more about a patient and their beliefs. An example of the questions they have would be, “What do you think has caused your problem? Why do you think it started when it did?”(Campinha-Bacote, 2011). Many people have different view points on their ailments and what caused it. By asking these simple questions, we can better address what beliefs and cultural stand points our patients have.

Having a patient start out by explaining their perception of the problem is a good beginning. If the patient is unable to explain, the nurse can then ask about any concerns they have about the problem. Next, it is important to learn if the patient has attempted the use of any home remedies or medicines to try and fix the problem. After addressing this, it may be easier going forward on what treatment options the patient may favor.

Overall, nurses are encouraged to keep in mind to be culturally competent to deliver patient-centered care. Utilizing small tools like the ANA websites questionnaire can help shed light on information a nurse needs. This in turn helps construct and enhance nurse to patient interactions when delivering care in the clinical setting.