NU 629 Week 2 Discussion 1 Cultural Competency Caring for a Vulnerable Population in My Own Community

Sample Answer

The vulnerable population within my community that I will focus on for this discussion is Hispanic children. I have chosen this group because as a future PNP in this area, it is one that I anticipate working with often.

Hispanic children in my community are vulnerable in the healthcare setting for multiple reasons including communication (language) barriers between parents and healthcare providers, low socioeconomic status and decreased access to healthcare/medications, and poor food quality (and subsequent predilection for obesity and chronic health conditions) (Johnson et al., 2020; Zamor et al., 2020).

Three ways that I will advocate for Hispanic children in my area are 1) attempt to become more proficient at Spanish/employ interpreter services when appropriate, 2) become more familiar with resources available to this population in my area, and 3) advocate for a nurse navigator to be on my healthcare team to assist with coordination of care for these patients.

Spanish Skills/Interpreter Services

I have a distant background in Spanish education (high school) but would like to get reacquainted with the language and culture to better serve my patients. My current organization offers classes on the utilization of Spanish in healthcare; I plan on registering for these.

I think it is always important to remember to use interpreters prudently to help close the language gap and make sure information is being understood in both directions. Lastly, I will ask the management team to assure that all my practice’s letter templates, informational brochures, etc. are offered in Spanish.

Familiarize with Community Resources

I plan to get more familiar with the community resources available so that I can offer these (as well as contact information) to patients and families in need; these resources could be nutrition benefits, housing assistance, and healthcare financial assistance (DeChesnay & Anderson, 2020).

As our text discusses, social workers are a wonderful part of the interdisciplinary team and are beneficial when patients need a personal advocate or getting set up for assistance within the hospital or community depending on their situations (DeChesnay & Anderson, 2020).

I will become familiar with the available social workers in my community and obtain their contact information so I can discuss cases and use their services if needed.

Encourage Nurse Navigator Role

Lastly, I will encourage the creation of the RN nurse navigator role in my practice to assist with this population as well as other vulnerable patients. Nurse navigators serve as members of the healthcare team who coordinate care for patients with chronic health conditions like diabetes, cancer, or who are undergoing surgical intervention (Shockney et al., 2021).

Although the general Hispanic pediatric population doesn’t necessarily fit into these groups, it is a population that could fall through the cracks of the system because of their minority status and the barriers they face; it would be advantageous to have a nurse navigator act a point person for these patients/families to help them navigate today’s complex healthcare system and improve outcomes (Shockney et al., 2021).

References

• De Chesnay, M., Anderson, B. A. (2020). Caring for the vulnerable Perspectives in nursing theory, practice, and research (5th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
  
• Johnson, K. A., Jones-Smith, J., Curriero, F. C., Cheskin, L. J., Benjamin-Neelon, S. E., Perin, J., Caicedo, M. R., & Thornton, R. L. (2020). Low-income black and Hispanic children’s neighborhood food environments and weight trajectories in early childhood. Academic Pediatrics, 20(6), 784-792. https //doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2019.11.013
  
• Shockney, L. D., Dean, M., & Allard, B. L. (2021). Chronic disease and complex care navigators A scoping review. Journal of Oncology Navigation & Survivorship, 12(7), 206-230.
  
• Zamor, R., Byczkowski, T., Zhang, Y., Vaughn, L., & Mahabee-Gittens, E. M. (2020). Language barriers and the management of bronchiolitis in a pediatric emergency department. Academic Pediatrics, 20(3), 356-
  363.