Astute observations from Eva Holsinger, my pediatrician colleague here in northeastern China: “Do you want your doctor to tell you everything, right away, as soon as she knows something bad is coming at you? Take it another step: who do you want the doctor to tell first: you, or your family? In the US […]
You are serving at the international immigrant health clinic in Dallas. At the door of the waiting room a scene like the United Nations opens before you: Somalis, Iraqis, Hmong, Burmese – many wearing traditional dress. You call aloud the name of your next patient, “Sunita Bajracharya please.” A middle-aged lady gets to her
“Why would you take away her last hope? If you tell my mother about the metastatic colon cancer she will die immediately! That would be cruel and I forbid you!” Luping’s son and I spoke in low voices just outside her hospital room. He continued, “I brought my mother to America to receive the
“The kid’s been seizing for an hour, but the dad won’t let us give anything. No drugs, no oxygen. This kid’s gonna die!” The paramedic’s speech was pressured. “He’s turning blue and the convulsions have not stopped since I picked them up in the shopping center parking lot. What else could I do?”
Cultural competence is our ability to cooperate effectively with people of different cultures. This is especially important in the increasingly complex cultural milieu of healthcare, whether set in Kansas City or Sri Lanka. Consider the case of Kate, a nurse practitioner at an urban safety net clinic in North America. Kate is interviewing a distinctly
What is the best formula for physical health? Actually, it depends upon whom you ask. People of some Asian cultures think that to be healthy they must eat snake, do Tai Chi, worship their ancestors, and never, ever give blood. Those from particular African cultures believe to be healthy they must eat a special
The doctor’s intentions were entirely good. Why else would an esteemed and skilled professor venture beyond the security of a North American medical center? He was brave and confident. What other mindset could compel him to enter the fray of Angola, Africa? His expectations were very high. Was it any surprise that he was
People seeking healthcare in North America are increasingly global in their make up. Some 50 million are culturally diverse and operate with understandings of health and medicine that are unfamiliar to most healthcare professionals. Nevertheless, we must effectively understand and communicate with these individuals and families to be successful in assisting them. Consider the following