Cultural Competence Physical Therapy

Cultural Competence (Physical Therapy) The United States is known as a "melting pot"- a country that harbors citizens of different religions, cultures, ethnicities, traditions, among other things. The importance of cultural competence cannot be emphasized enough to American citizens in general as it is with this competence that people can live in harmony. According to the U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services, cultural competence is defined as "a set of congruent behaviors, attitudes, and polices that come together in a system, agency, or among professionals that enables effective work in cross cultural situations" (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services).

In the context of health care, cultural competence is an important factor in identifying and finding solutions to disparities in the health care system- a way that patients and doctors can communication about health concerns, by taking into account and being respectful of "health beliefs, practices and cultural and linguistic needs of diverse patients" which can help bring about positive results (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services).

Cultural competence is a concept that is important to health care professionals over all, and also important to those in physical therapy as well. Foremost, cultural competence is an imperative concept to understand for health care professionals. The power of a patient's culture, which includes religious beliefs, has the ability to influence a myriad of things including how the illness/disease and the cause of it is perceived, thoughts on the health, healing and wellness belief system, their overall perception and assessment of treatment options, among other things.

Because culture has the ability to influence a patient's decision on these matters, it is absolutely imperative that healthcare staff work alongside the patients and understand their thoughts in order to reach a medical solution to help the patients. Additionally, the communication barrier that may exist when a cross-cultural situation presents itself is also something that is important when treating.

It is imperative that health care staff take into account the communicator factor and get interpreters if necessary to ensure that the patient understands what is going on so they may make the decision if something is culturally and personally sound. Furthermore, cultural competence is also an important concept to physical therapy, specifically because of the relationships that therapists have with patients over a longer duration of time.

It is absolutely imperative that therapists have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, which is a byproduct of having a strong cultural understanding of the patient that is being treated. Physical therapy allows people to gain their independence back and is the process of rehabilitating- products that have very different meanings to people who are of different cultures. To that end, cultural adaptations.