Nurses must strive to deliver impartial care to all members of the community. It is essential to be wary of negative evaluations made as a result of an individual’s membership in a specific group or as a result of a specific distinguishing feature. A nurse may identify stereotypes in the community as untrue beliefs regarding a specific group of people and bias as prejudice directed at a person in a manner that is seen to be unfair. A nurse may identify implicit bias in the community when they have specific attitudes towards specific people or associate certain individuals with stereotypes without being aware of their actions (Narayan, 2019). Nurses with implicit bias may show limited compassion for specific patients and spend less effort and time in the therapeutic relationship, thus increasing the occurrence of negative health outcomes. The aforementioned issues can be overcome through the delivery of culturally competent care.
The first step in overcoming bias is the application of emotional regulation. According to Narayan (2019), a nurse should actively control their emotions and thoughts when in contact with patients. Secondly, nurses should engage in partnership building, whereby they work with members of the community as equals towards the achievement of desired health outcomes. Perspective taking is a vital skill that allows nurses to try and understand their patient’s perspectives in a respectful manner (Narayan, 2019). It is also worth noting that counter-stereotypic imaging, where the nurse imagines the stereotyped individual as the opposite of the stereotype, helps to reduce bias (Narayan, 2019). Finally, increasing contact with people from different groups facilitates the acquisition of perspective, which is essential for learning personal histories. All the aforementioned strategies are intended to reduce cultural dissonance and reduce the prevalence of health disparities in the community.
Reference
Narayan, M. C. (2019). Addressing implicit bias in nursing: A review.American Journal of Nursing, 119(7), 36–43. Web.