Multicultural Competency Research Paper

Guideline 1: Psychologists are encouraged to recognize that, as cultural beings, they may hold attitudes and beliefs that can detrimentally influence their perceptions of and interactions with individuals who are ethnically and racially different from themselves (American Psychological Association, 2003). I agree that psychologist can hold many different beliefs concerning others. The beliefs can sometimes hinder a person from growing emotionally, and cognitively. In my opinion it is important for the professional to be familiar with the diversity that may exist in their patients and remain professional in their

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.

Over time, society has become increasingly diverse and globally connected. In order to meet the needs of an interconnected society, the American Counseling Association (ACA) endorsed the creation of multicultural and social justice competencies (Ratts, Singh, Butler, Nassar-McMillan, & McCullough, 2016). The Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies (MSJCC) were developed in order to showcase the importance of integrating MSJCC into all aspects of the counseling profession. Originally, these competencies were geared more toward majority professionals working with minority clients. However, it has become more clear that the range of diversity is endless and it is not uncommon for privileged clients to be counseled by minority counseled (Ratts, et al., 2016).

Since Bobby is Hispanic, comes from a poor upbringing, did not finish his education, and is unable to hold a job as an adult; treatment must be dealt with according to his ethics and culture. Information found under the APA Guidelines, Policy Statements, and Resolutions the discussion of proper procedure in ethnic background treatment and diversity (APA, 2010). The recommendation of a Hispanic psychologist will only assist in allowing Bobby to open up to treatment. The cultural similarities will assist in Bobby understanding that his parent’s life style was not appropriate; and if he continues on the same path he will not change the cycle that has caused him so much pain. Any language difference would be more accommodated with a Hispanic psychologist (APA, 2010). At this time Bobby has been able to correspond on an pragmatic level of English that was understandable. The treatment plan laid out for Bobby under Research and Evaluation allows for civil commitment. This will give Bobby time to gain control of the substance abuse and take control of the trauma from his past. The Hispanic intervention will allow for a more comforting environment. This part is important because Bobby suffered from abuse and neglect from his parents (Zalta, et al., 2014). His desire was to please his mother, no matter her requests. Although he now understands that instead of his parent’s protection he was abused and left

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,

Another outstanding point that you made in reference to applying cultural competence in your personal life is phenomenal. I believe getting to know who we are will help us pinpoint the areas that are not the strongest when providing cultural care to patients. Allowing us to work on our weaknesses and become proficient in the areas we lack. In order for us to become an expert in cultural competency and cultural care we need to apply it in every aspect of our lives.

Providing culturally competence are available constructs in augmentation of patient centered healthcare delivery that has been heavily emphasized in recent years. In particular to this writer’s professional career there have been ongoing improvements seen on a corporate and care level made to the implementation in providing culturally competent care. In this paper, we explore culturally competent and patient centered care with the Mexican female population here in the northeast. In doing so, the demonstration of timely theoretical frameworks of cultural competence must be afforded to our patients; to improve interactions in an interpersonal level. This group was recognized primarily due to identifying the integral role the female plays

competence is an imperative aspect that practicing social workers need to employ when providing treatment to clients. Daniel’s treatment provider has to maintain cultural sensitivity when assisting him with obtaining a higher quality of life. Daniel’s ethnicity, age, sex, class, and veteran status require that the treatment provider have knowledge regarding Daniel’s diverse cultural background. Treatment providers that are working with specific populations such as the military must acquire knowledge surrounding the experiences of military personnel, families and children (Cederbaum et al., 2014).

Cultural competency is an essential skill for family physicians because of increasing ethnic diversity among patient populations. Culture, the shared beliefs and attitudes of a group, shapes ideas of what constitutes illness and acceptable treatment. A cross-cultural interview should elicit the patient’s perception of the illness and any alternative therapies he or she is undergoing as well as facilitate a mutually acceptable treatment plan. Patients should understand instructions from their physicians and be able to repeat them in their own words. To protect the patient’s confidentiality, it is best to avoid using the patient’s family and friends as interpreters. Potential cultural conflicts between a physician and patient include differing

Cultural competence can be defined as: “the ability to manage cultural diversity (different cultural characteristics) in a way that allows diversity to contribute to the effectiveness of an organization rather than create misunderstandings and conflict” (Borrego & Johnson III, 2012). Cultural Competency provides a plan or set of policies that enables an organization to serve its culturally di¬verse populations more effectively. With continued increase in population diverse cultural differences become significant. Culturally diverse differences can play a critical role in public service delivery as well as continued or increased citizen trust and participation in government. Cultural differences among local communities have led some local governments to adapt with efforts for increasing their cultural competency (Benavides & Hernandez, 2007).

Diversity refers to an array of differences among individuals, groups, and communities (Pearson, p.1629, 2015).

How I plan to pursue my multicultural competence in my future counseling is by volunteering at local agencies that target populations I am not familiar with. Furthermore, I will be a member of the American Counseling Association (ACA) and attend multicultural trainings/meetings at my job site. Other ways to further my education would be subscribing to the magazine/becoming a member of the Counseling Today, which is a part of the ACA. In this magazine, it discusses updated information about counseling the diverse and training programs that are available for professionals in the community. The last counseling association that will assist me throughout my career is the American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMHCA). After graduating with

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.

from the context of the personal culture of the client (Sue, Arrendondo & McDavis, 1994; Sue &

backgrounds. It is the cornerstone of unity, synergy, and growth that is required in today’s world