Cultural Diversity

     My small town was 99.9% White until a few years ago. Now we have a large Hispanic and Indian population, and a growing Black, Asian and Middle-eastern population. I have always been fascinated by cultural diversity and languages, so this boom in varied immigrants has been an enjoyable learning experience for me. The problem is that of language in the medical setting. If you have a sick 2 year old in the middle of the night, you want to be able to communicate with the caregiver. I have made it a point to learn greetings and various medical terms and commands in several languages, just to be able to function at a level somewhere near where I want to be with my patients. I want to be able to comfort a small child or get my point across to an elder. I have spent my own money on phrasebooks and ‘flash-cards’ to aid in this pursuit. I am viewed by some of my co-workers as a little odd for doing this, but I feel that each patient deserves the best communication of what is happening to them as I can possibly give. I think that each person, regardless of their culture, country of origin, or background, is just as important and just as deserving of respect, compassion, acceptance, and care as any other. This is even more profoundly felt for children.

      I have tried to educate myself in the various social values and personal beliefs of the people I come in contact with from other cultures. I am aware many of them have differing views on personal, social space and what is acceptable in public. I also know that some cultures do not like to be touched without first being asked for permission; in some cases permission must be given from a parent or a spouse. If the case is extremely difficult to explain with limited phrases, cards, or gestures, we call in an interpreter if one is available for the language in question.

      Above all, I try to be patient and empathize with the patient and their situation, I could not imagine being sick in a hospital in another country where no one spoke English. I try to communicate as clearly and directly as possible with the patient, given my limited means, but at the same time to be sensitive to the patient’s needs and fears. So far, luckily, I have been able to be competent, helpful, and compassionate with the multi-cultural, multi-language peoples I have dealt with in the hospital.