African American Care

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Specializes in Cardiac.

Received an assignment today to report on African American health beliefs and practices as they relate to patient care. Anyone have any thoughts on resources or how to provide culturally competent care ?

Thanks in advance for your help!

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Specializes in Education, Administration, Magnet.

If you are in nursing school, we have chapters on different cultures in our Fundamentals book and also in our Maternity/ OB book.

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Specializes in Cardiac.

Thanks,

I suppose I should have said that I already looked in my texts. Just trying to tap into the vast experience of those who vist this site.

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Specializes in ICU, telemetry, LTAC.

Check out some nursing journals. One that I can't remember the name of, something like "journal of nursing research" always seemed to have good stuff in it like ethnographic studies and such.

You might consider asking real people around you if they mind being used as references, and conducting interviews.

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Specializes in Education, Administration, Magnet.

try this: http://www.raceandhealth.hhs.gov

It was posted as a reference in one of my nursing books.

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Specializes in Education, Administration, Magnet.

ok, I just tried that website I just posted and it did not work.....

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

As a black person, here are some things that are culturally relevant to providing health care to African-Americans.

1. Direct eye contact may be interpreted as rude

2. Person may seek home remedies or witch doctor before seeking professional help

3. Due to matriarchal family structures, person may seek advice from a trusted older female relative before seeking professional help

4. High fat, high sodium diet is commonly consumed. There's a preference for fried foods

5. Personal touch is perfectly acceptable among close friends and relatives, but is offensive among strangers and acquaintances

6. There's a tendency to be present-oriented and take the day as it comes. Person might be late to appointments since punctuality isn't stressed

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I'm glad you're asking. This website has some good information

http://www.blackhealthcare.com/

And I think that every nurse should be very knowledgable about the Tuskegee Syphilis experiement. It was only 34 years ago!!!!!

http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2002/jul/tuskegee/

Amanda

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Specializes in Cardiac.

Commuter and Mandana,

Thank you so much for your replies. I look forward to perusing these websites. Also, thank you for your personal insights.

I believe there is a great deal that a I can learn as I progress through this and other forthcoming information.

Thanks again!

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Specializes in Acute Care Psych, DNP Student.
As a black person, here are some things that are culturally relevant to providing health care to African-Americans.

1. Direct eye contact may be interpreted as rude

2. Person may seek home remedies or witch doctor before seeking professional help

3. Due to matriarchal family structures, person may seek advice from a trusted older female relative before seeking professional help

4. High fat, high sodium diet is commonly consumed. There's a preference for fried foods

5. Personal touch is perfectly acceptable among close friends and relatives, but is offensive among strangers and acquaintances

6. There's a tendency to be present-oriented and take the day as it comes. Person might be late to appointments since punctuality isn't stressed

Could you expand on #1? I cannot imagine not looking someone, anyone in the eye when talking to them. It would feel rude to me, as though I'm ignoring them, or not wishing to talk with them. Can you help me understand?

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Could you expand on #1? I cannot imagine not looking someone, anyone in the eye when talking to them. It would feel rude to me, as though I'm ignoring them, or not wishing to talk with them. Can you help me understand?
In European-American society, direct eye contact conveys honesty and attentiveness. After all, the eyes are the windows to the soul.

However, certain cultures interpret lack of eye contact as conveying respect. Native Americans and African Americans may interpret direct eye contact as rudeness or hostility. If an ethnic minority patient is looking away from you when you're providing care, they're still listening. However, looking away is considered respectful and non-antagonistic.

You'll learn this stuff in nursing school when you study cultural issues that impact nursing care.

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Specializes in Psychiatric & Critical Care.

I think that it is also important to remember that although some of the things listed may be true for some people, they are just generalizations. Most African Americans are born and raised in the U.S. and so some of those generalizations are just the not true, in fact the opposite may be true. I am black and I think that direct eye contact is very important and I always try to maintain eye contact when speaking with someone and I would be offended if a nurse didn't give me eye contact when speaking to me. I also value punctuality very much, because it is a good personality trait. I don't believe a person's race has anything to do with how they value time or their eating habits, these things are related to culture and socioeconomic status and the mainstream culture is the American culture that a lot of people, regardless of race, adapt to. So I like to keep all those things that are specific to each culture in mind, but your interaction with any person really depends on what that person's characteristics and not the generalized characteristics of that person's race.

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