Culturally-based Attitudes About Healthcare Contribute to Patient “No-Show” Rates

Posted by Marcia Carteret, M. Ed. on Apr 5, 2013 in Cultural Health Beliefs + Behaviors, Patient Compliance, Special Topics, Talking to Patients | 0 comments American medical culture is “clocktime” driven, and while time is money for nearly every business in our society, a medical practice lives by its schedule of appointments more than most. While socio-economic challenges clearly contribute to no-show rates for people from all cultures, specific cultural beliefs do further increase the number of appointment no-shows. The steep learning...
read more

How Culture Affects Oral Health Beliefs and Behaviors

Posted by Marcia Carteret, M. Ed. on Jan 31, 2013 in Cultural Health Beliefs + Behaviors, Immigrant and Refugee Health, Special Topics | 0 comments Each February, the American Dental Association (ADA) sponsors National Children’s Dental Health Month to raise awareness about the importance of oral health. Developing good habits at an early age and scheduling regular dental visits helps children get a good start on a lifetime of healthy teeth and gums. Good oral health contributes significantly to overall good health during a...
read more

The Role of Religion in Providing Culturally Responsive Care

Posted by Marcia Carteret, M. Ed. on Sep 23, 2011 in Cultural Health Beliefs + Behaviors | 0 comments  Skillfulness in cross-cultural communication with patients can be demonstrated by a provider’s comfort with asking key questions so that he or she may discover the broader context in which a patient is operating. This broader context includes the patient’s cultural-religious beliefs which have a tremendous impact on health behavior. Our beliefs about what helps restore us to health can...
read more

Key Determinants of Heritage Consistency in Cross-Cultural Patient Care

Posted by Marcia Carteret, M. Ed. on Jun 13, 2011 in Blog, Cultural Health Beliefs + Behaviors, Special Topics | 0 comments Culturally-responsive providers consistently work to develop awareness of cultural norms, including their own and those of western medical culture. They combine this awareness with an understanding of the dimensions of culture to more easily identify variations in patterns of communication and health beliefs/behaviors of patients. The most responsive providers explore health within the full...
read more