Culture and Ethnicity Awareness Assignment

Culture and Ethnicity Awareness Assignment

• Determine which culture you wish to research from your own ethnic background or that of a patient from a culture other than your own. If you come from a multicultural background, try to choose a culture whose beliefs vary from traditional American culture.
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• Use the Internet to research the health beliefs and practices of this culture and list as your references. References should not be older than five years unless the reference is a classic.
• Using the questions which follow this assignment, formulate a 3-8 page guide (title and references do not count as pages for the paper) to your culture that an RN could use as a reference to provide culturally sensitive care to a member of this ethnic group. The paper should be in APA format and have an introductory and conclusion paragraph. Any questions regarding APA 7e format see the APA module and example APA paper in the APA module.

GUIDELINES FOR CULTURAL RESEARCH:

RELIGION

• Describe the religious beliefs of the ethnic group which you have chosen.
• Identify the relevance that these religious beliefs have upon health care.
• Describe two nursing interventions that take religious issues into account.

HEALING BELIEFS AND PRACTICES

• How is pain and suffering viewed by people of this ethnic group?
• What role do cultural healers play for people of this ethnic group?
• What special practices does this cultural group have around the areas of death and dying?
• Give two ways that nurses can use this information in the care of a patient from this ethnic group.

FAMILY LIFE PROCESSES

• What is the common structure of the family in this ethnic group? (patriarchal, matriarchal)
• What is the role of elders in this family structure?
• If a member of this ethnic group was hospitalized, how would the family handle it?
• Give two ways to approach the family as a nurse needing to provide health related information.

COMMUNICATION

• Describe the cultural norms around the area of personal space for this ethnic group.
• How does the client using their native language communicate verbally and nonverbally? For example, describe the use of eye contact, gesturing, touching, etc.
• How would members of this ethnic group interact with people from the same culture; with those of another culture; with those in the health professions?
• Give two approaches that the nurse could try to use when needing to communicate with a person of this ethnicity.

DIET

• Describe the significance of food for members of this ethnic group. For example, are certain foods eaten at times of the birth of a new child?
• What are some favorite foods of this culture and how are they impacted by hospitalization?
• Give two examples of how the RN can encourage healthy eating yet also respect cultural preferences.