Mulitcultural Nursing- pts and nurses views wanted

[kukukajoo]

Thanking you all in advance for sharing!

I have seen this on here in the past, but not a whole lot and am looking for input from nurses who have had pts from other cultures as well as nurses from other cultures and their experiences. This would include religion as well and Parish Nurses may even have some unique experiences.

I have teamed up with a partner (from Korea) and we are doing our senior project and presentation (presented at a nursing symposium in NH) on transcultural nursing.

Would you share your experiences with us please? I have ordered books and begun looking up information but I find that those in the trenches provide the best knowledge for sure.

[elliejayRN]

On the contrary, I find most stereotypes and racism is based on ignorance, not knowlegde.

My experience has been the more educated the quicker the stereotype where you're banished without a hope and prayer for being seen as a person. Institutional racism insure that utopia of multicultural society never exists. Unlike the small town poster, I've worked with so many different people of various cultures, and it simply didn't matter. Language barriers, we do the best we can do. Cared for a Cambodian refugee (Psych unit) who tried to commit suicide twice prior to admission, oh you would be absolutely ashamed if you heard all the negative connotation my well educated coworkers applied to her. Or the depressed pt. admitted wearing a Berka (Psych unit), my well educated RN MSW tried to get the woman to remove it, most of her hospital stay. These acts didn't have anything to do with their lack of knowledge related to culture, they simply had they're own agenda. There was more than a little hint to superiority in the manner they dealt with those pts. Thinking one can round up a bunch of folks with a tidy bow is in itself, superior thinking perhaps worse?

Regarding your grandma stoicism, 20+ years ago, my mom had a CABG done, one day while I was a senior in high school. She went to see her doctor for pain in her chest, came home, did whatever, not telling us, and checked into the hospital the next day. When I saw her a day later, tubes everywhere, she was going on about needing to have her eyebrows tweezed. Once she got home she never complained of pain and quickly got about finding makeup to cover the scar, after it healed. She's an American Mut(European, African and Indigenous) or Heinz 57-one may call her black/African American, hence the problem. Often she's told she acts like a Jewish woman?, attracted to Catholicism, however doesn't believe in formal religion, believes in ancestors guiding her and the afterlife. Just like small town, I really do think it sets one up for stereotyping. :cheers:

Besides good luck, I wish you continued greater insight.