This app from the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) addresses ethnicity and religion in health decision-making in America.
The key concepts included in the cultural navigator include factors that health care providers should reflect upon to provide culturally competent care to their older adult patients. As the population of older adults becomes more diverse, it is important for clinicians to understand the subtly, but very significant ways, in which race, ethnicity, and religious background can influence perceptions of health and illness, as well as impact the development of a provider-patient therapeutic alliance. These factors may affect a patient’s willingness to engage in a therapeutic relationship, participate in shared decision making, and accept and adhere to the care plan. The quality of any encounter between a clinician and a patient from different ethnic or cultural backgrounds depends on the clinician’s skill and sensitivity. Questions about the individual patient’s attitudes and beliefs should be worked naturally and carefully into the clinical interview.
Although prior knowledge and familiarity with a patient’s cultural background (especially the historical aspects) is necessary, it may not be sufficient. No culture is monolithic- attitudes and beliefs vary widely from one individual to another within a single cultural group and sometimes even within an individual family. In addition to race and ethnicity, other factors such as past history, immigration status, level of acculturation, education, socioeconomic status, English proficiency, health literacy, religion, and spirituality all have significant influences on an individual’s perceptions and behaviors. Thus, it is inaccurate to assume that a person’s outlook is inflexibly linked to his or her cultural heritage.
The concepts presented in this text are intended to serve as a framework in choosing appropriate questions, rather than as a rigid list of cultural attributes or clinical scenarios.
The AGS Geriatrics Cultural Navigator is based on a previous AGS publication, Doorway Thoughts.
Citation: Periyakoil VJ, Ohuabunwa UK, eds. Geriatrics Cultural Navigator. New York: American Geriatrics Society; 2022.
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Copyright © 2022 by the American Geriatrics Society
ISBN: 978-1-886775-75-6
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