Cultural Assumptions and Healthcare

Q1. Of the six areas outlined in the Case for CLAS which one is most compelling for you? Which do you think would be most compelling to your organization?

Of all of the areas outlined in the Case for CLAS, the issue of health and healthcare disparities is in my eyes the most important because it underlines the social justice aspects of healthcare. Healthcare is a human right, yet particularly in the United States, access to quality care is limited by income and location. Additionally, there are clear demographic disparities within the United States regarding access to health care. These include the disproportionate number of children and adults from historically discriminated minority groups who suffer from obesity and chronic health conditions as well as a lack of access to healthy lifestyle enhancements such as healthy food and time to exercise.
Remedying demographic disparities in the United States will take many years and cannot be rectified by one organization alone. As a result, I believe that my organization is more likely to be concerned about gaining a competitive edge to other healthcare organizations. No matter how successful any organization, even nonprofits wish to distinguish themselves from competitors in the marketplace by offering unique services. Furthermore, an organization would argue that providing a distinct service, whether in terms of wellness monitoring or treatment, is an important part of serving the public. This includes addressing the needs of the community in a specific way with cultural services. Patients are more likely to return to a healthcare organization if the organization is willing to offer providers who can accommodate linguistic needs and who understand a community’s health-related perspective or concerns.
Q3. In what ways can you implement or help implement (or advocate for the implementation of) the themes and concepts addressed in the National CLAS Standards in your organization?
Above all, education is needed for providers to ensure that they understand the cultural perspective of the populations they are addressing. For example, if addressing the needs of a primarily African-American and Latino population, the higher risk of heart disease and diabetes in this demographic must be kept in mind when evaluating the likely health risks of patients. On the other hand, if dealing with a largely first-generation Chinese-American population, the fact that patients may use complementary and alternative medications from Traditional Chinese Medicine that may be contraindicated with conventional medicine would be useful to issue appropriate cautions to patients when necessary.
Cultural awareness also means setting realistic benchmarks for an organization, given that certain populations may have higher diabetes and cardiac risks. This allows for prioritized and targeted health campaigns that are designed to track and monitor genuine improvements. Tailored campaigns and treatment offerings also allow the organization to secure a comparative advantage relative to competitors. These include linguistically and culturally appropriate educational materials as well as the care itself. Finally, it is very important that providers do the necessary internal self-awareness “work” to ensure that they can give the type of care that patients need. While no healthcare provider can be fluent in every language or even every cultural worldview of every patient, it is still important for providers to at least engage in self-scrutiny of their culturally relative assumptions related to healthcare and to understand if there is a fundamental difference in those views and the views of their patients.