There are approximately
6.5 billion people living on planet Earth. Within
that number, there are more people living outside
their country of origin than at any other time in
history. One person out of 35 is an international
migrant — 3% of the global population.
We can find dramatically different languages, religions,
family relationships and values, as well as views
on health care and treatment wherever we go, including
in our own respective countries. A female mental health
professional born and trained in India may have moved
to the United Kingdom and is seeing a male client
born and raised in Ecuador — how do they communicate
and how do each view the same mental illness?
Culture may influence many aspects of mental health,
including how individuals from a given culture communicate
and manifest their symptoms, their style of coping,
their family and com¬munity supports, and their
willingness to seek treatment. Likewise, the cultures
of the clinician and the service system influence
diagnosis, treatment, and service delivery. Cultural
and social influences are not the only determinants
of mental illness and patterns of service use, but
they do play important roles.
In the mental health care setting, culture impacts
how people
•
Label and communicate distress
• Explain the
causes of mental health problems
• Perceive
mental health providers
• Utilize and
respond to mental health treatment |
How can we move forward and give
the best care possible if we don’t take into
consideration the differences of those we are trying
to help?
People are probably more tied to their cultural
and ethnic beliefs when ill than when feeling well.
Illness is stressful and may lead individuals to revert
to what is known and comfortable.
Foundations of Nursing,
“Transcultural Healthcare,” Foundations
of Nursing
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