Cultural Diversity in Medicine

This afternoon was interesting to me. Block 2 really gets us learning about different cultures and diversity in general. A more subtle point is that of assumptions. We saw that in a patient earlier in the block whose skin was 'black' but whose ancestry was equally Scottish and Carribbean. His point was well taken - the medical field is very focused on numbers and statistics (if you hadn't noticed) - however there needs to be a proper balance of integrating that information and applying it to our patients. When you get a patient in your exam room, no matter what they look like, you need to get an idea of who they are and what they value. Is culture even important to them at all? Some 'white' people are very into their Norweigian culture, there are European professors on campus who are white but have very different cultures because they are not American. Alternatively, there are some people who claim their Native American roots, but know nothing about their culture. Just knowing what someone's ancestry is does not tell you anything about who they are. We integrate this concept into our Patient History by finding out where they are from, what they do, etc... This is also why you ask if they are taking any other herbs/teas/alternative medications in addition to asking about formal medications and over the counter aids. One question regarding Native Americans always seems to come down to the "medicine man." Who is that guy and what does he do? I dont have the answers either, however there really is more to it than that. What do you need to know to give the best patient care? What does your patient value, what medications/herbs/supplements do they take, will they take the medication you prescribe?Enough with my soapbox.

That being said, with the way time is these days - it is hard to make friends and find out about everyones culture in one sitting. You can find out how much they value the traditional beliefs however. I found a few websites addressing this. Some cribsheets from the University of Washington that give you a few pointers when interacting with patients of cultures different than your own.

Also another website that has many links to resources regarding this topic of Cultural Diversity in Healthcare.