Developing Cultural Competency

It is high time that people learn about different cultures to have a thorough understanding of the same and thus achieve cultural competency. This is necessary for educators, healthcare givers, attorneys, organizations and all to live in a cross-cultural world without any emotional or physical conflict. Most organizations have their presence in multiple countries and have business relations with people of different cultural groups. So, for a successful business also, cultural competency is the demand.

For us to develop cultural competence we need to have a level expertise, knowledge and attributes. When I mention Expertise I am referring to professional skills such as, being able to communicate correct information for culturally different people and their communities, the skill to candidly discuss racial and ethnic issues and to react to culturally based signs, the skill to understand the meaning that traditions/culture has for each person, Interviewing skills that help to understand and accommodate the role of language in a person’s culture and the skill to use the idea of empowerment on behalf of culturally different people and communities.

Cultural competence is defined as possessing the skills and knowledge necessary to appreciate, respect, and work with individuals from different cultures. It is a concept that requires self-awareness, awareness and understanding of cultural differences, and the ability to adapt to clinical skills and practices as needed

It have been proven effective in providing services to individuals from a wide spread of diverse backgrounds. Cultural competence is understanding a set of congruent behaviors, knowledge, attitudes and policies that enable effective work in cross-cultural situations (Bazron, Cross, Dennis, & Isaacs, 1989). This means that an individual trains to understand different cultural groups. Cultural competency training is beneficial to all human service organizations because it aims to increase the knowledge and skills to improve one’s ability to efficiently serve different cultural groups therefore eliminating biases and

I have learned that it is important that educators  and health providers be trained on cultural competency to understand the population they are serving. Marks, Sims, and Osher (King, Sims, & Osher, n.d.) define cultural competency  as a set of congruent behaviors, attitudes, and policies that come together in a system, agency, or among professionals and enables that system, agency, or those professionals to work effectively in cross–cultural situations" ( as cited in Cross et al., 1989; Isaacs & Benjamin, 1991). Health providers and educators should investigate demographic patterns or trends in the place where they live and work. This brings awareness of the types of cultures that they might come across when they are working with people. Organizations should integrate and implement policies that promote the value of  diversity, self-assessment, manage the dynamics of difference, acquire and institutionalize cultural knowledge, and adapt to diversity and the cultural contexts of communities they serve (Georgetown  University, 2004). Georgetown University (2004) also stresses that culture competency grows gradually and is always open for improvement.

Cultural competence is about having awareness, respect and understanding about the diversity around you. Cultural competence is one of the eight key practices that the early years learning framework features as vital to support a child’s learning. Cultural competence is about learning and building an understanding about different cultures while being respectful and open about different cultures and the people within them. Its more then just awareness of cultural differences, its about the ability to understand people across different cultures and developing constructive attitudes concerning cultural difference.

Culture includes the customs, traditions, ideas, and ways of interacting with the environment that often differ in various parts of the world. Over the last several decades in the U.S. there has been a growing awareness and tolerance of cultures other than the traditional western culture in the community. And in healthcare we are expected to provide all patients and families with the same respect and treatment, but at the same time provide individualized care. In order to meet these standards the work place environment has responded with training and education on cultural competence. The term cultural competence can be defined by the ability to respect and understand the beliefs and attitudes of

Cultural competence is the ability to acknowledge, understand, respect and communicate with cultures and ethnicities different from one’s own. It encourages the acceptance of individual’s differences in appearance, behavior, and culture which offers positive changes in the way people interact with others. Furthermore, it offers an awareness and sensitivity to diverse cultures that often goes unrecognized (Hanser & Gomila, 2016). By fully understanding how to effectively interact with people from diverse cultures, the individual maximizes their ability to interact, not only in professional settings with staff and clients but in our growing society as a whole. Also, being culturally competent is beneficial because while it improves interactions between people of

Understand cultural competence and why is it important especially for that have a diverse workforce.

Both articles were very informative and provided information about how agencies need to change in order to become culturally competent. The agency I intern with this year is the Toms River Regional School District, specifically High School East, in that respect, my agency is very different than those in the two articles reviewed. Some of the core issues are the same when it comes to needed to learn cultural competency in terms of race and sexual orientation specifically. I have seen a similar issue in my agency needing to address cultural competency. Toms River School District is not very culturally diverse, in the sense that the staff and students lack ethnic diversity, but there are students and staff who are part of the LGBT community. Slowly,

This article elaborately explains the process of becoming culturally competent. It states the stages of development as Denial, Defense, Minimization, Acceptance, Adaptation, and Integration, respectfully. The article goes in depth on each stage of development, the first three being stages in what is termed “ethnocentrism” and the last three being stages of “ethnorelativism”. While the different stages are being discussed, the author presents examples of each and emphasizes the fact that American’s are not the only people who go through these stages when becoming more culturally competent.

The culture of the United States, in this day and age, is varied and widely diverse. Regardless of what field or industry one finds themselves in, becoming culturally aware of other ethnicities is very important. The healthcare industry in particular, stresses this fact by providing health care providers continuing education classes that teach about cultures in the United States, providing translators for patients who do not speak english, and allowing cultural practices and ceremonies within the healthcare facilities. These, and many other practices in healthcare, are in response to the growing cultural diversity in the United States, and Dr. Larry Purnell’s development in 2002 (and update to the model in 2013) of a cultural competence theory

I would use my culture competence skills to assist in being effective with working Andre and other clients as well because this is a set of skills, values and principles that professional must acknowledge while working or interacting with different culture groups and ethnic groups. Having knowledge about the different populations that you may come into contact with will help you efficiently and respectfully interact with clients from diverse backgrounds.

According to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, cultural competence comprises of “understanding and appropriately responding to the unique combination of cultural variables that [individuals] bring to interactions (2004).”

Cultural competence begins with the recognition that we are all born, raised and living in social, educational and organizational cultures. These cultures shape our assumptions, beliefs, values and behaviors. When we interact with others, the similarities and differences between our cultural expectations often make the interaction both more interesting, and more challenging.