7 Ways Culture Influences Health Care
- Family and Community. Everyone retains certain beliefs as a result of family and community influences, especially in...
- Religion. For the truly zealous, religion is not just a hobby. It’s a way of life, and that can add barriers to...
- Perspectives on Death. This is not a question about life after death or funeral rituals,...
How does culture affect our health?
“Culture works at all levels,” says Dr. Arthur Kleinman, professor of medical anthropology and psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, in the New York Times article, “Bridging the Culture Gap.” “It affects health disparities, communication and interactions in the doctor-patient relationship, the illness experience, and health care outcomes.”
How does a patient’s cultural background affect health care?
A patient’s cultural background can have a profound impact on health care, and doctors need to be aware of this. More and more medical schools have integrated “cultural competency” into their curricula, reports the New York Times. Read on to find out more about how culture influences health beliefs, decision-making, and patient education.
How do culture and society influence patient care?
In addition, culture specific values influence patient roles and expectations, how much information about illness and treatment is desired, how death and dying will be managed, bereavement patterns, gender and family roles, and processes for decision making. Cross-cultural variations also exist within cultures.
How does culture affect the way we respond to medications?
Responses to Medications Perhaps one of the most important cultural influences has to do with the way a patient responds physically to medication. Some people from backgrounds other than Caucasian may not metabolize the medication correctly, causing serious complications in treatment.
How does culture affect health?
Arthur Kleinman, professor of medical anthropology and psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, in the New York Times article, “Bridging the Culture Gap.” “It affects health disparities, communication and interactions in the doctor-patient relationship, the illness experience, and health care outcomes.”
How to achieve cultural competency in medicine?
Awareness is the first step to achieving cultural competency in your practice. Doctors need to realize that they also bring their own cultural context to patient relationships, even if they don’t realize it. For example, in modern medicine, sometimes the focus can be more on the disease than the person with the illness.
How does culture influence patient roles and expectations?
In addition, culture specific values influence patient roles and expectations, how much information about illness and treatment is desired, how death and dying will be managed, bereavement patterns, gender and family roles, and processes for decision making. Cross-cultural variations also exist within cultures.
How do cultural differences affect patients?
Cultural differences affect patients‘ attitudes about medical care and their ability to understand, manage, and cope with the course of an illness, the meaning of a diagnosis, and the consequences of medical treatment. Patients and their families bring culture specific ideas and values related to concepts of health and illness, ...
Why do cultures have systems of health beliefs?
All cultures have systems of health beliefs to explain what causes illness, how it can be cured or treated, and who should be involved in the process. The extent to which patients perceive patient education as having cultural relevance for them can have a profound effect on their reception to information provided and their willingness to use it.
Why are some cultures reluctant to accept a diagnosis of severe emotional illness or mental retardation?
Some sub-populations of cultures, such as those from India and Pakistan, are reluctant to accept a diagnosis of severe emotional illness or mental retardation because it severely reduces the chances of other members of the family getting married. In Vietnamese culture, mystical beliefs explain physical and mental illness.
What do Native Americans believe?
Native Americans also place great value on family and spiritual beliefs. They believe that a state of health exists when a person lives in total harmony with nature. Illness is viewed not as an alteration in a person’s physiological state, but as an imbalance between the ill person and natural or supernatural forces.
Why is harmony important in Asian culture?
Among Asian cultures, maintaining harmony is an important value; therefore, there is a strong emphasis on avoiding conflict and direct confrontation. Due to respect for authority, disagreement with the recommendations of health care professionals is avoided.
Do Vietnamese accept Western mental health?
Vietnamese don’t readily accept Western mental health counseling and interventions, particularly when self-disclosure is expected. However, it is possible to accept assistance if trust has been gained. Russian immigrants frequently view U.S. medical care with a degree of mistrust.
Why is culture important in healthcare?
From a patient perspective culture is important because it effects how they are treated, the experiences they have getting healthcare, and the outcomes of their treatment, even their overall wellness. Culture is what a healthcare organization does regularly and frequently, the behavior patterns that are consistent and that impact patients.
Why is it important to change healthcare culture?
This is a cultural shift that is beneficial to patients because it improves communication, a major barrier to safety, and because it puts more minds to work on each patient issue. It also helps to manage care continuation more smoothly and efficiently.
What is the culture of a hospital?
The culture of a healthcare setting can be a deciding factor in where you receive medical care. Patients can choose between a hospital that prioritizes patient autonomy and safety, for example, or a hospital in which the culture is more traditional and keeps patients further outside the care decision-making process.
What is paternalistic culture in medical care?
This means that the doctors acted like father figures, telling patients what was best for them. This was done without giving patients information or allowing them any level of autonomy or ability to make decisions.
What is healthcare culture?
Healthcare culture is a set of behaviors, beliefs, policies, and actions that are regularly implemented within a particular setting, such as a doctor’s office or a large hospital. Larger healthcare settings may have multiple subcultures, with different opinions on providing care between ...
What is a culture of safety?
Many industries in which safety can be a concern, such as manufacturing, chemical plants, or shipping, prioritize safety and develop a culture around it. A culture of safety means committing to practices that minimize risks and maximize safety.
What are the factors that impede positive change in healthcare?
These include poor leadership or lack of leadership, employees who don’t feel empowered to make changes, constraints imposed by outside stakeholders, and differences in subcultures, such as between physicians and healthcare managers.
How does culture affect mental health?
Here are four ways culture can impact mental health: 1 Cultural stigma. Every culture has a different way of looking at mental health. For many, there is growing stigma around mental health, and mental health challenges are considered a weakness and something to hide. This can make it harder for those struggling to talk openly and ask for help. 2 Understanding symptoms. Culture can influence how people describe and feel about their symptoms. It can affect whether someone chooses to recognize and talk about only physical symptoms, only emotional symptoms or both. 3 Community Support. Cultural factors can determine how much support someone gets from their family and community when it comes to mental health. Because of existing stigma, minorities are sometimes left to find mental health treatment and support alone. 4 Resources. When looking for mental health treatment, you want to talk to someone who understands your specific experiences and concerns. It can sometimes be difficult or time-consuming to find resources and treatment options that take into account specific cultures factors and needs.
How can we help the mental health of minorities?
You can help address the mental health of minorities by understanding the role culture plays in mental health and by becoming trained to help those around you . Mental Health First Aid gives people the skills to identify signs of mental health and substance use challenges and action steps to take to help them get treatment.
Why are minorities left out of mental health?
Because of existing stigma, minorities are sometimes left to find mental health treatment and support alone. Resources. When looking for mental health treatment, you want to talk to someone who understands your specific experiences and concerns.
Do minorities get mental health care?
According to research published by The Commonwealth Fund, minorities in the United States are less likely to get mental health treatment or will wait until symptoms are severe before looking. In fact, only 66 percent of minority adults have a regular health care provider compared to 80 percent of white adults.
How does culture affect people?
For instance, culture affects the way in which people describe their symptoms, such as whether they choose to describe emotional or physical symptoms. Essentially, it dictates whether people selectively present symptoms in a “culturally appropriate” way that won’t reflect badly on them.
How do cultures differ in mental health?
Furthermore, cultures differ in the meaning and level of significance and concern they give to mental illness. Every culture has its own way of making sense of the highly subjective experience that is an understanding of one’s mental health. Each has its opinion on whether mental illness is real or imagined, an illness of the mind or ...
What are the factors that affect mental health?
However, mental illnesses and mental health in general are affected by the combination of biological and genetic factors, psychology, and society. This intersectionality is important, but the heavy influence of societal factors often goes ignored.
