3 Best Practices for Providing Culturally Sensitive Care

3 Best Practices for Providing Culturally Sensitive Care

One of the primary challenges of providing hospice care is personalizing the treatment to each individual patient.

Oftentimes, this takes the form of being in tune with a patient’s culture, which may be different than the caretaker’s.

Gaining an understanding of a patient’s culture is absolutely necessary to ensure that the patient is satisfied with their care.

To help you understand how best to be culturally aware with patients, we’ve assembled some helpful tips.

3 Tips to Ensure You’re Being Culturally Aware

As with anything else, there are steps you can take to become better at being culturally aware. Not only do you want to avoid awkward misunderstandings, but you want to make sure your patient feels understood.

Here are three ways you can ensure you’re being culturally aware.

Have a Conversation

 The first thing you want to do with a patient is have a talk. This talk can cover a range of subjects, but the patient’s culture should be included among them.

Learn where the patient comes from, their religious beliefs, and the tradition they uphold. Get a sense of the patient’s attitude toward treatment and the end-of-life process.

As an example, one of the most common cultural differences is the preference to be treated at home by family, as opposed to a facility. 

Do Your Research

Once you’ve had the conversation and have a good idea of the patient’s culture, you’ll want to do some additional research.

While what the patient tells you directly should always take precedent, it doesn’t hurt to gather some more information. At the very least, the additional research may give you some subjects to discuss with your patient.

It will also show them that you care and are going out of your way to make them as comfortable as possible.

Oblige the Patient Whenever You Can

Once you have the deepest understanding possible of your patient and his or her culture, you should then oblige their wishes whenever possible. Be willing to make concessions if full accommodations simply aren’t feasible.

Even if something may seem odd to you, it’s important for the patient to feel as at-home as possible when in your care. Make them and their family feel like you understand them and honor their beliefs.

Cultural Awareness is a Major Element of Personalized Care

Personalized care should be a top priority for any healthcare professional, and cultural awareness is a major part of it.

Hopefully, these tips have shown the importance of cultural awareness in hospice care, as well as best practices.

While medication and good facilities are important aspects of treatment, individualized care and listening to the patient are just as vital.

Are you considering hospice care for your loved one? Reach out to Divinity Hospice online or by phone (281-339-7079). We’ll give your loved one the respect, attention, and personalized care they deserve