Achieving effective communication in providing health care to Indigenous patients is clearly complex.
Both the institutional and individual capacity to meet the communication needs of Indigenous patients must be considered.
Expertise in intercultural communication - a capacity which is crucial to providing quality health care to Indigenous patients - requires highly specific educational resources and opportunities for staff.
Cultural awareness courses are essential - but are not always sufficient to develop the highly specialised skills non-Indigenous staff need to work effectively with their Indigenous patients - and their Indigenous co-workers.
There is also little opportunity for Indigenous patients to learn about the concepts and communication processes they will encounter in their interactions with non-Indigenous health service providers.
The concept of 'cultural competence'(or 'intercultural competence') is receiving increasing attention in the field of health service delivery to diverse populations. Work in this field overseas has considerable relevance - and potential benefit - for the Australian context.
Cultural competence is a set of attitudes, skills, behaviors, and policies
that enable organizations and staff to work effectively in cross-cultural
situations. It reflects the ability to acquire and use knowledge of the
health-related beliefs, attitudes, practices, and communication patterns
of patients and their families to improve services, strengthen programs,
increase community participation, and close the gaps in health status
among diverse population groups.
(Cross et. al. 1989 and Lavizzo-Mourney and Mackenzie 1996 as cited in Cultural Competence: A Journey, Bureau of Primary Health Care. Health Resources and Services Administration, US Department of Health and Human Services, n.d.) http://www.diversityrx.org/.
Click here for some strategies to help achieve cultural competence.