Understanding Multicultural Communication and Effective Patient Education - Free Essay Example

1. Explain Multicultural Communication and Its Origins

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Multicultural communication refers to the interaction amongst different cultures. According to Falvo (2011), it originated from civilization and the intermingling of different cultures. Trade and immigration hence making interactions across cultures inevitable have brought people from various backgrounds and cultures together. Multicultural communication in healthcare is the act of decoding patient education in a hospital setting. Therefore, health care professionals are required to have exposure to various diverse cultures to execute their duties effectively.

2. Compare and Contrast Culture, Ethnicity, and Acculturation

Falvo (2011) defines culture as the distinctive pattern of beliefs, values and attitudes shared by members of a population or a society. Concepts in a culture are passed from one generation to another. Ethnicity is a group of people identified through common ancestry. It is embodied in culture. Conversely, acculturation refers to the adaptation of values, behaviors, and customs of a different culture. Both culture and acculturation are learned while ethnicity is biological.

3. Explain How Cultural and Religious Differences Affect the Health Care Professional and the Issues that Can Arise in Cross-Cultural Communications

All cultures have distinct features that distinguish them from other cultures. Thus, working with culturally and religiously sensitive patients can be problematic for health professionals. This is because they are not acquainted with specific values, beliefs, and customs of each ethnic group (Falvo, 2011). Cross-cultural communication may lead to misunderstanding resulting in disintegration of the rapport between health professionals and the patients.

4. Discuss Family Culture and Its Effect on Patient Education

The role of family on the patient's aptitude and readiness to conform to treatment advice are essential in patient education. Nonetheless, the roles and anticipations of the family are not similar in all cultures. Cultural beliefs influence the relationship and role of the family and can affect patient education negatively (Murcia & Lopez, 2016). For example, gender roles, and child-rearing activities may affect the patient’s receptiveness of teachings.

5. List Some Approaches the Health Care Professional Can Use to Address Religious and Cultural Diversity

Falvo (2011) suggested the following practices that health professionals can use to address religious and cultural differences.

• They should be aware of the need for culturally and religiously sensitive healthcare.
• They should avoid assumptions concerning beliefs and cultures that they are unfamiliar.
• They should acquaint themselves with information about other cultures.
• They should also establish rapport and trust with the patients regardless of their racial or ethnic backgrounds.
• They should find ways of dealing with the language barrier, which will enable a better understanding between them and the patients. For example, the use of translators

6. List the Types of Illiteracy

• Prose, which is the skills and knowledge that are required to find and apply information.
• Document, it is the capability to find and apply data confined in tables, diagrams, and insurance documents.
• Quantitative, it refers to the capacity of patients to use mathematical skills in their daily lives.

7. Discuss Illiteracy as a Disability

In a health care setting, illiteracy may be regarded as a disability. This is because patients with low literacy levels have trouble in reading discharged instructions, patient teaching brochures, directions on how to take their medications, and health documents. The primary purpose of patient education is to pass relevant information to patients to help them promote their own wellbeing and health. Therefore, Falvo, (2011) claims that the capacity and incapacity to read and comprehend health information may have profound effects on the extent to which patients adhere to health recommendations. Therefore, patients with literacy disabilities require special treatment when providing patient education to ensure better understanding of the teachings.

8. Give Examples of Some Myths about Illiteracy

Some of the stereotypes associated with low literacy levels is that illiterate people come from a low economic status, are unschooled, and their grammar is poor. Falvo (2011) also reveals that health professionals believed that in the United States, illiteracy did not exist.. However, research has revealed that any person can be illiterate and a large number of US citizens have low literacy levels.

9. Explain How to Assess Literacy Skills and Evaluate Written Material for Readability

Farahani et al., (2013) argued that assessing health literacy facilitates the effectiveness of patient education. According to him, there are no standardized methods that can be used to assess literacy skills comprehensively .Nonetheless, some instruments such as the REALM and the SMOG have been developed to measure patient reading skills. Also, health professionals can assess written materials for readability by evaluating whether patients are able to read the material or not. This will aid in making the necessary adjustments like increasing the visual representation and organizing the information for better clarity.

10. Identify Ways a Health Care Professional May Establish Effective Communication

Health care providers should avoid rushing when delivering information to patients and ensure that the teaching environment is free from distraction. They should also offer enough time to address concerns and questions from the patients. They should be approachable and physically accessible to patients (Murcia & Lopez, 2016). This will make the patients feel free to discuss concerns and ask questions. If patients feel intimidated by a health professional, they may decline to seek information required to make informed decisions.

11. Suggest Ways the Health Care Professional Can Help a Patient Remember Instructions

Patients are required to understand and remember instructions for their wellbeing. Health professionals may help them recall through organizing teaching materials, providing clear instructions, repetition of important information, and reinforcement. Discussing information based on a topic outline enables patients to organize the data in their minds. The information provided should also be precise and clear for better understanding. Health professionals should also repeat information to patients and reinforce it by writing down the instructions on a piece of paper or a handout to increase clarity and retention.

References

Falvo, D. (2011). Effective patient education a guide to increased adherence (4th ed., p. 483). Jones and Bartlett Publishers.

Farahani, M. A., Mohammadi, E., Ahmadi, F., & Mohammadi, N. (2013). Factors influencing the patient education: A qualitative research. Iranian journal of nursing and midwifery research, 18(2), 133–139. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3748569/

Murcia, S. E., & Lopez, L. (2016). The experience of nurses in care for culturally diverse families: A qualitative meta-synthesis. Revista latino-americana de enfermagem, 24, e2718. https://doi.org/10.1590/1518-8345.1052.2718