Why does this matter so much? Let’s start with the most obvious cultural barrier that can get in the way of delivering effective care, language differences. As of 2021, 25.7 million people have limited English proficiency. That is a lot of people. At the same time, a 2016 study by the American Hospital Association showed that out of 4,586 h hospitals only 56 percent offered any kind of interpreter or translation services for patients who spoke limited or no English. The ability to communicate is the most basic condition necessary for effective care, and when it is absent many adverse effects can occur such as confusion about medication, adverse reactions due to incorrectly taking the medication, difficulty accessing care, and not seeking care when needed out of fear of not being able to understand their healthcare providers. [other problems too]

It isn’t just language barriers that lead to problems. Lack of cultural understanding can also lead to patients delaying or forgoing treatment, decreased compliance on the part of patients, and leads to patients experiencing dissatisfaction with the care they receive and developing negative perceptions of their healthcare providers. Meanwhile, high levels of cultural competency result in the opposite outcome, with high levels of patient satisfaction, higher levels of trust and adherence to treatment, and overall better health outcomes.

Nurses are the 'front line' for cultural competence
Ideally, every type of healthcare professional, including physicians and administrative staff, should have cultural competence. But nursing is the largest healthcare profession and nurses have the most interaction with patients on a daily basis. This makes it especially urgent that they receive cultural competence training, especially with the increasing demographic shifts and diversity in the U.S.

The good news is that cultural competence training works and it is effective. The research shows that it boosts nurses’ cultural competence and that nurses found such training useful and thought-provoking. When nurses are equipped with this knowledge and confidence, the positive health outcomes discussed above are much more likely. However, it’s important to start teaching cultural competence as early as possible since nursing students can start working with real-life patients quite early into their nursing education. It’s never too late to teach and learn cultural competence, but it’s best to do so before student nurses start working in clinical settings. Fortunately, the research shows that teaching cultural competence training to master’s level nursing students has also resulted in positive benefits including cultural safety, better care, and better health outcomes.

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