Question

Discuss a situation where a better understanding of cultural differences would or could have led to a better understanding, Explain the situation and what could have been done differently and how the outcome could have changed Example situation: An elderly Asian male comes to your medical office with his grand-daughter. The man does not speak English however his grand-daughter does. They grand-daughter provides translation for you when collecting the elderly man demographic information, however, he refuses to allow his grand-daughter to translate for him when he is asked the reason te his visit and what his symptoms are.

Answer 1

Understanding cultures differently and promoting trans-cultural approach in healthcare is essential and helps better understanding of the situation at times and delivery adequate care. One such situation is explained below-

A middle aged Asian Female was presented to the Emergency department with her husband, the couple belonged to Muslim Asian culture and the female has a Hijab worn when she was presented. The female knew a little English but her husband was not aware of the language and spoke in Urdu. During examination as the clinician was unaware of the fact that Muslim culture requires consent of the husband before approaching their wife, he asked questions directly to the female as she was the patient and she understood English some how. This created some issues among the case and the scenario got tensed.

The understanding of the situation would have been better if the clinician had knowledge of trans-culture approach and different cultures. This would be a different scenario and managed appropriate if the better understanding of cultures was a part of care.