Abstract
Introduction: Developing nurses' cultural competence begins with their basic training, and requires them to participate in an array of activities which raise their awareness and stimulate their interest, desire and curiosity to know about different cultures. The aim of this work is to evaluate a cultural competence teaching model for nursing students. Method: A qualitative and quantitative evaluation was done using a semi-structured questionnaire completed by 155 students. Results: An improvement in cultural awareness, knowledge and attitudes among students as well as their willingness to recognize the other's difference was noted. The qualitative evaluation raised 3 themes: attitude change, cultural intelligence improvement and exploring cultural similarities. Conclusions: Developing nurses' cultural competence needs to be part of their basic training and based on cultural knowledge and experiential learning methods as well as providing them the opportunity to be exposed to different cultures.
Highlights
Developing nurses' cultural competence begins with their basic training, and requires them to participate in an array of activities which raise their awareness and stimulate their interest, desire and curiosity to know about different cultures
Cultural competence is defined as the process one goes through to continuously develop and refine one’s capacity to provide effective health and social care, taking into consideration people’s cultural beliefs, behaviors, and needs, as well as the effects that societal and organizational structures may have on them (Papadopoulos, 2006)
41.0% of the students said there was a great improvement in their general cultural knowledge following the transcultural nursing course
Summary
Developing nurses' cultural competence begins with their basic training, and requires them to participate in an array of activities which raise their awareness and stimulate their interest, desire and curiosity to know about different cultures. In order to provide safe and effective care, caregivers must be aware of the health beliefs, values, norms, language, and decision-making processes of their patients which affect their health (Calvillo et al 2009). Developing cultural competence requires a strong foundation in the professional education process that provides knowledge, a deep understanding of the problems, experiences and rules that promote students' involvement in a multicultural society, a commitment to ethical values and behaviors, appreciation of shared and different traditions, and awareness of the world and its problems (Anderson, 2004). The caregivers who care for patients from different cultural groups experience the daily challenges of low health literacy, cultural barriers, and language disabilities that impose difficulties to providing effective treatment. More and more attention has been given to the two main challenges, cultural differences and language barriers, and more awareness and vigilance are being promoted for the delivery of culturally and linguistically appropriate medical services (Singleton & Krause, 2010)
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