Issues that relate to the cultural competence of junior medical personnel are an essential aspect of the activities of any clinic that specializes in providing comprehensive medical services to patients. Achieving high performance is impossible not only without sufficient motivation of employees but also without respect for specific ethical standards. The quality of care depends on how well the medical worker understands the significance of all the activities done and understands what issues may arise. Therefore, the improvement of nurses’ cultural competence is relevant and essential work that the management of any medical institution should control.
Issue of Caring for People with Different Social Backgrounds
One of the issues associated with the cultural competence of nurses relates to the following question: how should junior medical personnel treat patients with different social backgrounds? As workers often face the need to care for people of different races, nationalities, and ages, problems connected with mutual understanding may arise (Purnell 79). In this case, it is required to ensure conditions for patients to feel safe and have sufficient medical assistance. Management should ensure that subordinates do not violate the rules of nursing ethics and assist their wards well regardless of their social status, age or nationality (Smit and Tremethick 133). If this issue is resolved, healthcare institutions will undoubtedly receive positive feedback from grateful patients and will be able to provide highly qualified assistance.
Issue of Professional Secrecy
Another issue that relates to improving the cultural competence of the nursing staff of medical clinics is as follows: are junior medical workers obliged to preserve professional secrecy and confidential information or not? There are cases where patients face quite serious problems, and sometimes they do not want any third party to know about them. Professional nurses are not to provide such data to anyone unless patients are willing to share particular circumstances of their lives (Gallagher and Polanin 335). Also, as Holland remarks, this issue is relevant in case some people are interested in the state of patients in order to clarify specific events (114). It can be, for example, the task of insurance agents or police representatives. In this case, nurses can disclose confidential information only with the patient’s consent. This principle is an indispensable condition for the observance of nursing ethics and should be supported in all medical institutions.
Issue of Relations in the Team
Increasing cultural competence among health workers requires discussing the following issue: are employees obliged to show respect for one another or not? Medical ethics does not imply strict observance of norms of communication between colleagues. Nevertheless, some unspoken rules provide for mutual support and assistance among employees (Delgado et al. 209). When the team is working coherently, the heads of medical institutions can focus on monitoring the performance of subordinates rather than solving problems with communication (Matziou et al. 528). Consequently, respectful relations among nurses are a rather good way to improve the cultural competence of clinic staff.
Conclusion
Thus, the improvement of nurses’ cultural competence is the task that is relevant and essential in most modern clinics and medical centers. In the process of work, it is significant to pay attention to such issues as caring for patients with different social backgrounds, preserving professional secrets and confidential information, as well as communicating of staff communication in the team. These issues need to be considered in detail in order to improve the level of cultural competence among junior medical workers.
Works Cited
Delgado, Deborah Ann, et al. “Cultural Competence Training for Clinical Staff: Measuring the Effect of a One-Hour Class on Cultural Competence.” Journal of Transcultural Nursing, vol. 24, no. 2, 2013, pp. 204-213.
Gallagher, Ruth, and Joshua R. Polanin. “A Meta-Analysis of Educational Interventions Designed to Enhance Cultural Competence in Professional Nurses and Nursing Students.” Nurse Education Today, vol. 35, no. 2, 2015, pp. 333-340.
Holland, Karen. Cultural Awareness in Nursing and Health Care: An Introductory Text. 3rd ed., CRC Press, 2017.
Matziou, Vasiliki, et al. “Physician and Nursing Perceptions Concerning Interprofessional Communication and Collaboration.” Journal of Interprofessional Care, vol. 28, no. 6, 2014, pp. 526-533.
Purnell, Larry D. Guide to Culturally Competent Health Care. 3rd ed., F.A. Davis, 2014.
Smit, Eileen, and Mary Jane Tremethick. “Development of an International Interdisciplinary Course: A Strategy to Promote Cultural Competence and Collaboration.” Nurse Education in Practice, vol. 13, no. 2, 2013, pp. 132-136.