How Culture Affects Oral Health Beliefs and Behaviors

Posted by 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...
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Manage Your Speech to Save Time and Be More Effective with Telephone Interpreters

Posted by on Jan 31, 2013 in Immigrant and Refugee Health, Non-English Speaking Patients, Patient Compliance, Special Topics, Talking to Patients | 0 comments Communication in health care settings is inherently challenging, even when providers and patients/families share the same cultural background and speak the same language. Consider the following: Health care professionals speak “medicine.” The complex technical nature of their language doesn’t always translate easily into plain English. Adding to the challenge of translating medical...
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Providing Healthcare to Hmong Patients and Families

Posted by on Jan 9, 2012 in Asian Cultures, Culture-Specific Topics, Immigrant and Refugee Health | 0 comments Who Are the Hmong People in America? The Hmong (pronounced hmung with a very soft h) in the United States are a relatively small southeast Asian minority group who began living here at the close of the Vietnam war. Due to their unique cultural beliefs and indigenous practices, Hmong refugees settled in the United States often present a unique set of challenges to healthcare professionals. As a...
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Cultural Barriers to Treatment and Compliance

Posted by on Mar 1, 2011 in Cultural Health Beliefs + Behaviors, Immigrant and Refugee Health, Patient Compliance | 0 comments   Because many health beliefs and behaviors are culturally-based, it follows that when two different cultures come together in a health care setting, a collision of expectations often occurs. Thus, when working with diverse populations in the United States, health practitioners often view their patients’ cultures as a barrier to care. Having very different beliefs about illness causation...
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Non-verbal Behavior in Cross-Cultural Interactions

Posted by on Nov 3, 2010 in Immigrant and Refugee Health | 0 comments In previous newsletters, we explored using informed generalizations to learn about cultural differences. This concept certainly applies to learning about non-verbal behaviors. There is no quick and easy-to-use reference guide for culturally-based behaviors and lists of cultural dos and don’ts are ineffective. Even if it were possible to assemble a truly comprehensive list of facts for...
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