Culture Advance Nursing Practice
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Cultural influences like religion, spiritual beliefs, and communication patterns are integral parts of delivering comprehensive care to patients. Based on Purnell’s Domains of Culture, personal, global, familial, and communal perspectives influence care delivery. Thus, nursing professionals should understand the relationship between these domains to deliver competent care. This paper seeks to analyze the communication patterns of Hispanic (Columbian) culture through the lens of Purnell’s cultural domains.
The willingness to share thoughts, feelings, and ideas
Family life is prioritized in this culture, and their catholic religion mainly influences this. They take pride in their closely-knit family structures, and the adults are incredibly protective of the young ones, especially when interacting with strangers. The nature of this culture’s family structure has made them very conservative, which limits their interaction with outsiders.
The Hispanic (Columbian) culture is hierarchical, and individuals are respected based on their age (Elder et al., 2009). In this sense, the elderly make vital decisions from welfare to health matters. A nurse attending to a patient from this culture should be aware that a series of consultations are made before essential information is shared. It’s vital to note that these individuals are indirect communicators; this influences how they convey bad news and disappointing information.
Any healthcare worker attending to an individual from this culture should be articulate and sensitive to delivering delicate information. Hispanic- Columbians seldom deliver sensitive information frankly or bluntly. They prefer using a long approach to relay such information, mainly to evade conflict, and mandate tactful communication. Thus, bluntly relaying information regarding death, accident, or critical illness is vehemently condemned (InterExchange Staff, 2020). As earlier mentioned, this is a hierarchical society; hence before such information is delivered, they appreciate it when the adults are consulted first. It’s then that the senior member of the family delivers the message to other members.
Among other practices considered taboo in this culture are: beckoning someone using only the index finger, joking about drugs, and jokes on violence. Also, individuals from this culture consider it rude to point at someone using the index figure. Therefore, healthcare professionals need to be aware of these communication patterns when dealing with such a patient.
Practice and meaning of touch in this culture
Like other cultures, the Hispanic-Columbians have etiquettes and customs that guide how they interact and relate. They employ various aspects of non-verbal cues; however, they maintain a high degree of respect. For instance, regarding physical contact, Hispanic Columbians are very tactile (InterExchange Staff, 2020). They are fond of nudging people’s arms when reinforcing their points during conversations. Additionally, putting arms around people’s shoulders and holding hands is something common among them. These forms of physical contact are usually done to show gratitude and friendliness. However, it’s worth noting that being conservative individuals, men, unlike women, avoid touching each other at all costs.
Personal and spatial distancing strategies
Nursing professionals should be culturally competent, and one means of achieving this is by being culturally sensitive. Attaining cultural sensitivity is respecting other people’s practices, beliefs, and communication patterns (Matusiak, 2018). Hispanic-Colombians maintain minimal personal space when conversing with each other; specifically, they prefer getting close to someone when making an important point. In some cultures, this may appear as invading someone’s personal space. However, according to this culture, closely bringing their face towards the other party is a way of reiterating their point.
The use of gestures and facial expressions
Hispanic-Columbians are considered expressive individuals, and this transcends the conversations they have amongst themselves. Despite being conservative individuals, they don’t hide their emotions. Additionally, they are empathetic listeners and attentive when conversing with people (InterExchange Staff, 2020). Therefore, a nurse needs to exhibit the same energy and respect when speaking with patients or their families. This eases the conversation’s flow and prompts the individuals being attended to share information that can help in delivering care.
Hispanic-Columbians are expressive, and the use of gestures is as common as it is in other cultures. Among the common gestures used in this culture are: thumb-up sign that translates to “okay,” holding one’s hand with the palm facing downwards indicates height, and tapping the neck using the middle finger displays that one has a problem (Elder et al., 2009). However, it’s worth noting that gestures are considered obscene in this culture, and individuals are discouraged from using them. For example, pointing using two fingers to indicate length is regarded as an obscene gesture. Equally, placing a circle made with one’s thumb or index finger on the nose is considered vulgar in this culture. Therefore, nursing professionals should mandate that they are culturally aware of such gestures when attending to patients from this culture.
Eye contact
In this culture, people are expected to maintain eye contact irrespective of age and gender. Avoiding eye contact implies guilt, dishonesty, and sometimes dislike for the other party. Thus, a nurse attending to such a patient should ensure they maintain eye contact to enhance the patient’s buy into the care delivery process.
Acceptable ways of standing and greeting people
Maintaining direct eye contact is also preferred when greeting each other. In this culture, a strong handshake accompanied by a smile and eye contact is the recommended way of greeting each other. In the same light, men are supposed to wait for women to extend their hands first (InterExchange Staff, 2020). This is considered a form of respect for each other; hence a male nurse handling a female Hispanic-Columbian should know this to earn the patient’s trust.
Establishing an acquittance with Hispanic-Colombians is crucial in getting them to share their thoughts, feelings, and important information regarding their health (Matusiak, 2018). Once an acquittance has been established, individuals from this culture express warmer greetings like embracing each other, kissing the right cheek, elbowing (especially for men), and patting each other’s back.
Therefore, a healthcare professional should mandate that they’ve established an acquittance with a patient before proceeding with the forms of greetings mentioned above. The most prudent thing to do is learn the commonly used verbal greeting used in this culture and the formal greeting titles (Matusiak, 2018). The widely used verbal greetings are “Buenos Dias” to mean good day, and “Buenas Tardes” to mean good afternoon.
The culture’s worldview
Another critical aspect of handling a patient is understanding the acceptable and unacceptable practices in their culture. Their worldview is present; they believe in firm cultural characteristics, namely family, respect, kindness, personal connections, present, and hierarchy. These characteristics are the foundation for how they interact with each other and strangers.
Rules on punctuality
Regarding punctuality, Hispanic-Columbians tend to be relaxed; they aren’t the best time managers. Thus, a caregiver dealing with a Hispanic-Columbian should emphasize time management. This is essential in mandating that they don’t miss crucial medical appointments during care delivery.
Impact of this culture in healthcare
The cultural characteristics and considerations in this culture have significantly impacted care delivery. In 2013, an affiliation of the health sector- Minority Health, rolled out standards that healthcare professionals should use when delivering care (InterExchange Staff, 2020). Among the standards rolled out was cultural competency. This has since enhanced healthcare quality and minimized discrimination among patients from different cultures.
Nurses and other healthcare professionals are presently exhibiting an enhanced cultural competence level when delivering advance care, euthanasia, and palliative care. For instance, Hispanic-Colombians strongly believe in respect for hierarchy and family inclusion. Clinicians are therefore expected to respect these cultural aspects when attending to patients.
Conclusion
The Hispanic (Columbian) culture, just like other cultures, have communication styles and patterns that guide how they interact with each other. The most astounding aspect of this culture’s communication pattern is its indirect, conservative, and expressive. Cultural incompetency undermines care delivery; thus, it’s essential for healthcare professionals, especially nurses, to be culturally competent. Attending to a patient from a Hispanic (Columbian) culture requires individuals to know their common greetings, religious affiliations, and their do’s and don’ts.
References
Elder, J., Ayala, G., Parra-Medina, D., & Talavera, G. (2009). Health Communication in the Latino Community: Issues and Approaches. Annual Review of Public Health, 30(1), 227-251. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.publhealth.031308.100300
InterExchange Staff. (2020). InterExchange. Retrieved 20 January 2021, from https://www.interexchange.org/articles/visit-the-usa/latino-hispanic-culture-in-us/.
Matusiak, G. (2018). Delivering Culturally Competent Nursing Care [Ebook] (2nd ed., pp. 10-25). Springer Publishing Company. Retrieved 20 January 2021, from https://connect.springerpub.com/content/book/978-0-8261-3737-1.