Emerging Standards Essay

The nursing profession has a long history of assessing and placing patient needs first when giving care. The tenets of nursing practice include meeting those needs using individualized care by collaborating with the patient, family, and health care team members. (American Nurses Association, 2010). The concept of transcultural nursing aligns with these tenets because it calls on nurses to provide patient-centered care by taking into account the patient’s background, beliefs, culture and values. In this paper, I will identify the factors that made it necessary to develop the transcultural nursing theory, describe the meaning of diversity and its relationship to the field of nursing, and explain three ways that I provide culturally sensitive care to my patients.

Many health care professionals think that if patients are just treated with respect, then cultural issues will be avoided. That statement is not the correct.

Over the past 25 years, society has shifted dramatically in a new direction. The demographic makeup of the United States continues to change drastically. Because of this change, everyone will be required to become increasingly aware of the people in their surroundings. Some may argue that diversity is based on gender, sex, creed, origin, or some other form of tangible trait however; diversity is much more than that. The American Nurses Association produces the Online Journal of Issues in Nursing. This publication has written several scholarly articles about diversity and healthcare. The article, Many Faces, Campinha-Bacote, states “Diversity. It is a word that means something different to each and every person”. What a great definition. As I continue to do research I am seeing more and more information about diversity and other people’s definition of what it is. One website I came across while compiling this research included http://www.diversityrx.org/ This particular site is devoted to providing resources to the community and healthcare employees about trends in diversity. This website is for anyone interested in cultural diversity issues. Healthy People 2010, is a ten-year

Cultural competence can be defined as using the ability of one’s awareness, attitude, knowledge and skill to effectively interact with a patient’s many cultural differences. Madeline Leininger, a pioneer on transcultural nursing describes it this way; “a formal area of study and practice focused on comparative human-care differences and similarities of the beliefs, values and patterned lifeways of cultures to provide culturally congruent, meaningful, and beneficial health care to people” (Barker, 2009, p. 498). The importance of cultural diversity in healthcare allows for the delivery of appropriate cultural autonomy. Showing respect for others will lead to trust between nurse and

More Diverse Healthcare Professionals lead to positive patient outcomes. Racial and ethnic minorities have higher rates of poor health outcomes than white in the case of disease, even when income, employment status and insurance coverage are controlled. Cultural bias is one contributor to this, according to the IOM Report Unequal Treatment:

The American Nurses Association believes culturally congruent care is so important, they implemented it within the Scope and Standards of Practice for nursing, “Standard 8. Culturally Congruent Practice: The registered nurse practices in a manner that is congruent with cultural diversity and inclusion principles” (American Nurses Association, 2015).

One of the most apparent cultural differences is one’s biological variations. This refers to growth patterns, physical characteristics, disease prevalence, and resistance to disease. In health care there is a baseline for cultural and ethnic groups, however, it is important to view everyone as an individual. Culturally appropriate care is an ever changing process. Nurses should always be sensitive to their patients and remember that if nothing else they need to treat them with respect (Davidhizar, Giger, pg. 121).

The United States is a diverse accumulation of cultural backgrounds which can often set the stage for feelings of confusion, anger, mistrust, and a host of other emotions when dissimilar cultures disagree. Cultural competence in nursing can help eliminate these barriers and provide a platform for nursing to follow in the quest to understand a patient's culture and background. When a nurse takes the time to learn about a given culture prior to providing care, it conveys she respects the patient's right to their beliefs, customs, and culture. It does not necessarily mean the nurse agrees with their practices but

We live in a very diverse nation and overcoming challenges related to cultural beliefs and preferences is a very common obstacle for health care workers today. In an article in The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing cultural diversity is defined as being more than just race,

In my counseling the older adult class we discussed in great detail the different types of culture, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc. and how it affects the way we as health care providers of helpers should approach a person. I’ve learned in my ongoing time here at CMC that there are all kinds of diversity within the healthcare field, amongst the doctors, case managers, nurse practitioners, registered nurses and others caregivers. There is also a lot of diversity within the patients’ in the hospital. Some patients’ come from within the community and some may just be visiting or coming from surrounding communities. Along with the difference in community and backgrounds that the patients’ come from they also vary by illness or healthcare need. At first it is hard to realize the difference among those that come

The concept of diversity is one that individuals may not think of when they think of nursing. Diversity is a major component to nursing and the care that is provided to patients. In this concept analysis, antecedent, attributes and consequences of diversity are identified. The following antecedents are: race, social economy, knowledge, gender, and education level. The attributes of diversity are individual, variety, perception, difference and civilization. The consequences of diversity are as follows; acceptance, decision making, cultural competency qualifications, respect, degrading, trusts

Point 2:- Person (health consumer): Valuing the diversity of people involves acknowledging and responding to each person as a unique individual, and to their culture. It requires nurses to develop cultural knowledge and awareness and greater responsiveness to the languages spoken enabling them to better understand and respond effectively to the cultural and communication needs of people in their care, their families and communities during a health care encounter’ (Code of ethics,

The population in this country is the most diverse in the world, thus places of care need to be prepared for whoever walks in their doors to receive care. Having slight knowledge of who the patients are, their beliefs and cultural norms, would not only improve the communication between the nurse and patient but also make their stay more comfortable and stress free which helps with the improvement of health. By improving the diversity in the nursing profession, the delivery of culturally competent nursing will also

The premise of Madeleine Leininger ‘s Theory of Culture Care Diversity and Universality is that one must regard his or her patient both holistically and with respect to the patient’s given cultural background. Leininger aims to establish a nurse-patient relationship in which communication and collaboration are culturally congruent. Via such interactions, a nurse can hypothetically deliver individualized, culturally competent care. However, while Leininger’s theory has many benefits and clear applicability in a multicultural society, its execution may fall short due to the predominating social norms and values held by larger society.

The first topic that interest me is the theory of cultural care diversity. Today, more than ever, a nurse must learn how to effectively communicate and provide care to patients from many different backgrounds. It is important to realize that every person is an individual in their way of thinking and their expectations of care provided. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2013), minorities are