Nursing Culture Research Paper

In today’s healthcare system, effective leadership is essential to improving and reaching organizational outcomes. A leader is someone with the ability to influence others but, an effective leader uses positive strategies to inspire employees to work towards the same goal. Leadership in nursing requires a constant effort to motivate others to become part of the organizational transformation. This can be achieved using a transformational leadership style with a focus on communication, motivation, and empowerment.

The term culture is defined as “the thoughts, communications, actions, customs, beliefs, values, and institutions of racial, ethnic, religious, or social groups” (Potter & Perry, 2013). With the increase of culturally diverse populations in the United States, it is important for nurses to practice cultural competence. Cultural competence is the ability to acquire specific behaviors, skills, attitudes, and policies in a system that permits “effective work in a cross-cultural setting” (OMH, 2013). Being culturally competent is essential because nurses who acknowledges and respects a patient’s health beliefs and practices are more likely to have positive health outcomes (OMH, 2012). Every culture has certain views and attitudes concerning

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

In order to deliver nursing care to different cultures, nurses are expected to understand and provide culturally competent health care to diverse individuals. Culturally competent care is tailored to the specific needs of each client, while incorporating the individual’s beliefs and values (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2006, p. 90). By being culturally competent, nurses are able to help improve health outcomes by using cultural knowledge and specific skills in selecting interventions that are specific to each client (Stanhope & Lancaster). Therefore, nurses “should perform a cultural assessment on every client with whom they interact with” (Stanhope &

With the large increase multicultural population in the United States, nurses encounter patients with differences in healthcare beliefs, values and customs. To provide adequate nursing care, nurses must be aware of these differences. They must respect and acknowledge the patient’s culture. To do this, nurses need education on cultural competence to ensure patient satisfaction and better patient outcomes.

If you get admitted to your local Florida hospital, how likely is it that your nurse will be of your same ethnic background? According to the Florida Center for Nursing ([FCN], 2011), demographics of Florida nurses differ significantly from the demographics of Floridians with some ethnic groups. The greatest disparity exists with the differences in the Florida population of men, Hispanics, and Blacks.

I consider myself to be a fairly traditional American white woman, with non-denominational Christian beliefs. My ethnicity is sort of a mixture of Irish, German, Native American and a few others, but my main cultural background is traditional American. I do not put a lot of emphasis on my ethnicity, because in my opinion and the opinion of many others as well, Caucasian American can be race and ethnicity. I celebrate traditional American holidays such as Christmas, Independence Day and Thanksgiving. I do eat traditional American foods, but I also love ethnic foods of all kinds. According to McKinney, James, Murray, Nelson and Ashwill (2013), “Belief in Jesus Christ as the son of God and the Messiah comprises the central core of Christianity” and “Study of biblical scripture; practicing faith, good works, and sacramental rites (e.g., baptism, communion, and others); and prayer are common among most Christian faiths” (p.44). I am non-denominational; however, I do believe this statement sums up the main core of my beliefs. I pray, I have been baptized, I believe in good deeds, and attending church. The only difference is that I do not believe that you must attend church or partake in communion to have a relationship with God; I believe that relationship is rather personal. Now in terms of American culture in the healthcare setting, Euromed Info Online indicates that Western industrialized societies such as the United States, which

In healthcare it is very important to have strong leaders, especially in the nursing profession. A nurse leader typically uses several styles of leadership depending on the situation presented; this is known as situational leadership. It is important that the professional nurse choose the right style of leadership for any given situation to ensure their employees are performing at their highest potential. Depending on which leadership style a nurse leader uses, it can affect staff retention and the morale of the employees as well as nurse job satisfaction (Azaare & Gross, 2011.) “Nursing leaders have the responsibility to create and maintain a work environment which not only promotes positive patient outcomes but also

I was born and raised in the Philippines. I identify myself with the Filipino culture. I chose to learn about the Mexican culture, so I have interviewed my coworker. The interview was focused on the meaning of food in their culture and its impact on their health.

Shirey, M. (2006). Authentic leaders creating healthy work environments for nursing practice. American Journal of Critical Care, 15(3), 256-268.

When people think of the word culture they think about ethnicity and religion, but that is not the only meaning of culture. Culture can also be defined as, “The set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization” (Merriam-Webster,1828). In most workplace settings, there is a workplace culture which means they go by standards that have been set for them or by them and each workplace will be different. In the nursing field culture is going to feel different in each setting, but nursing as a whole is the same at the core.

This article will discuss organizational culture as it relates to the nursing profession and healthcare as a whole.

My southern heritage has directly influenced the person I am today. I grew up in South Louisiana and I have lived there all 25 years of my life. My childhood was not easy, but I think those tough situations prepared me for life, and taught me the value of family. I attended a private, Christian school and I am so appreciative of my parent’s sacrifices that allowed me to receive that education. I would describe myself as a kind, hardworking individual who respects, cares for, and values others. I believe these attributes are a genuine reflection of my upbringing. My Christian faith is what motivates me each day and it is also what has inspired me to help others through a career in nursing.

Edward Albert once said, “The simple act of caring is heroic”. This gives precedence to the fact that not all heroes have stories or myths written about them; some are known simply for the kindness that they have exhibited towards others. The idea that a hero is inclusive, means that the person is considered a hero to all parts of the world (not just a certain culture or time-period); however, this is simply not true. For instance, Jesus is considered a hero and savior to those that follow the Christian/Catholic Religion, but to those that follow the Islamic religion he is simply a prophet and messenger of God (Largen, 2014). Thus, cultural heroes differ and they are known mostly to the cultures they impact. An example of such a little

In the first scenario, the nurse was going to listen to the patient's lung sounds and she moved her hair to the side and saw numerous red circular marks on her back. The nurse immediately freaked out and started saying things like "oh my god, what are these marks on your back?", "Are you being abused?", and "I'm a mandatory reporter" (DiversityNursing, 2011). She did not give the patient a chance to speak up and explain the situation. Instead, the nurse stormed out of the room before the patient could talk. This type of cultural incompetence did not enable ethically sound nursing care. The second time around in the video, the nurse started off by asking the patient how she would like to be referred to. When the nurse saw her back and the marks