Reflective Essay: The Role Of Diversity In Health Care

This is a report I am writing as part of my work experience portfolio showing how individuals care needs are successfully met. This will be done by talking about equality, diversity and anti-discrimination.

Whilst currently on work placement at the community centre I have been asked to write a report as part as my portfolio. The care centre in which I am currently at provides a variety of services. The centre provides a variety of services and promotes equality, diversity whilst also promoting anti-discriminatory behaviour.

Cultural diversity in the health care setting is increasing each year. Knowing how to care for patients of different religious and spiritual faiths is essential to providing high-quality, patient-centered care. The author of this paper will research three lesser-known religions; Taoism, Sikhism and Shamanism. Through this paper, she will provide a brief background on each of the three religions and present information regarding spiritual perspectives on healing, critical components of healing and health care considerations associated with each religion.

Diversity is the process where all individuals are respected and valued the same. This means within a health and social care setting all individuals care is not obstructed or compromised by their differences whether this race, religion or gender.

When America was founded, it was established on freedom and equality for all people. At first it was just religious freedom, but eventually freedom of speech, press, petition, and more. In time, America began to be known as a “melting pot” of cultures as more and more people came because they wanted this freedom; the more people who came though, the more problems America had. There were too many cultural discrepancies between people, and ultimately America, the country based on freedom and equality, faced challenges concerning diversity.

Diversity can be shown through many different aspects such as ethnicity, environments we were raised or things we have experienced. For me, I bring diversity through experiences with the various people that I have worked with. Every summer of middle school and high school I would go on mission trips with my youth group. For these trips instead of going to other countries like a lot of people do, we would go to various cities in the United States to help the people there. My youth group has gone to cities like Newark, Atlanta, Cleveland, Detroit, and Nashville. In these cities, we worked with the boys and girls club, assisted in the homeless shelters, worked at the food banks and fixed up homes for the people that needed it in those areas.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) falls within societal minority groups such as low income, people of color, and disables (AHRQ, 2011). Due to their gender identity, discrimination, violence, and even denial of human rights and healthcare services is a common challenge among LGBT population. LGBT still faces many health disparities primarily related to the historic bias of healthcare professionals anti-LGBT manners even though society acceptance has been favorable. According to Ard and Makadon (n.d), “until 1973, homosexuality was listed as a disorder…, and transgender still is.” This stigma prevents healthcare professionals to openly ask questions in a non-judgmental manner related to sexual identity. On the other hand, if the patient senses that the healthcare environment is discriminating they may be reluctant to disclose important information as their sexual orientation; thus, missing important opportunities of been educated about safety and health care risks.

hough freed from slavery over a century ago, African Americans and other minority groups are still enslaved by America’s rigid race classifications and assumptions. It is a fact that White Americans are significantly more healthy than African Americans, Asian American, Hispanics, and other minorities (HHS). For example, hypertension, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, stroke, and kidney failure, is 12.2% higher among African American men than white men, and 16% more for African American Women (“Health”). This health gap has resulted in debates on whether these disparities are due to genetics or social factors, and whether or not race should be a factor in health care treatments. According the American Anthropology Association,

Through her research, Leininger established an outline to further explain the importance of culturally competent care and the challenges presented throughout societies and healthcare institutions. The most obvious need for cultural sensitivity is the ongoing immigration throughout the world. As more people from different parts of the world enter into one area, different cultures will be present. The people that migrate to a new region or country will have the expectation that respect will be shown for their beliefs, particularly in the healthcare setting. This includes the use of technological advances in medicine. Some cultures may not understand or trust the delivery of care that is based on new technology (Andrews & Boyle, 2016).

Diversity means difference as everyone is very different no one is the same, for example twins may be identical but be totally different and have different interests and different stages off development.

Understanding the hierarchy of the family is imperative in understanding the functions of the family unit. With some familiarity with the different cultures in a given community, a medical professional will be able to ascertain who the head of the household is. The head of the household differs from culture to culture, as such, “misunderstandings which include but are not limited to the involvement of the male in all aspects of health care

In Health and Social Care settings, it is crucial that all practitioners work in such a way that promotes equality and diversity for all other staff and service users. Equality does not suggest that we should treat all individuals the same, as everybody has different needs and requirements that must be took into consideration, but means that we must offer all individuals equal opportunities, and not treat any individual or group of individuals less favourably on the basis of their protected characteristics; such as race, ethnicity, gender, age, disability, beliefs and cultures, etc. Diversity is the concept of recognising, respecting and accepting everybody for their differences, and promoting an inclusive environment for all staff and service users associated with the setting. Practitioners should always work in a way which

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 purpose of this paper is to reflect upon the diverse experiences that I have had in my personal and professional life. Fortunately, I have had a large mix of diverse friends and experiences in my life. This paper will discuss those diversities as well as the plan to expand on my current knowledge.

Today when people move across continents with the help of technology their culture and heritage moves along with them. Almost each and every continent is populated with people from different nations who have diverse traditions and cultures. Thus knowledge of health traditions and culture plays a vital role in nursing. People from different cultures have a unique view on health and illness. Culture-specific care is a vital skill to the modern nurse, as the United States continues to consist of many immigrants who have become assimilated into one culture. I interviewed three families of different cultures: - Indian (my culture), Hispanic and Chinese. Let us see the differences in health traditions between these cultures.