Abstract
Diversified care is a huge issue in the healthcare administration. One of the reasons for this is funding, another is that patients are becoming more aware of the medical advances that exist and are more demanding in regards to the treatment that they obtain. This has a huge impact on a hospital’s finances and strongly affects how they operate. Nonetheless, there are many ways that the issue can be addressed and avoided by both looking at the needs of the community and enabling the institution to change and implement the technological advances as they come about. One way that this can be done is through implementing Multidisciplinary techniques to help increase the performance of one’s team. This is because it has been shown that a healthcare facility that is willing to take a multidisciplinary approach that uses the most modern medical technologies available are also the ones that are more diverse. Another aspect of diversification one must consider is the delivery system that is used. This is because they are crucial when it comes to meeting the needs of both the facility and the patient. Outside of Multidisciplinary techniques and the delivery system, there are a number of other ways to address the challenge of diversification. One such way is through applying nursing theory, which works to provide a variety of approaches in regards to care options. Still it is necessary for the diversification programs that are being put in place to result in increased profit for the facility. This is why the diversification of healthcare must be competitive not only when it comes to other healthcare facilities, but also when it comes to the market.
Methods
This section will discuss the research methods used by various researchers in regards to ascertaining the challenges of diversified care. The method that would be best for gathering the information that one needs in order to draw an unbiased and well-rounded analysis of the data would be based on interviews. These interviews would ideally be conducted face to face with a members of the research team. There is also the possibility of sending out surveys or interview questions by mail.
Research Method and Design Appropriateness
Qualitative research is research that is done as communication. They could be conducted as interviews or surveys. Quantitative research on the other hand concentrates on numbers and statistical data. For gathering information on how to better handle the challenges of diversified care, one would choose to use qualitative research. The reason for this is because it would allow the researcher to interview not only the hospital staff and administrators, but also any former or current patients that may be interested in being interviewed.
Population
In “One Size Does Not Fit All: Meeting the Healthcare Needs of a Diverse Population” by A. Wilson-Stronks. The study population was that of hospital administration and staff with access to patients on a regular basis in 30 hospitals in 32 states. This seems a rather small population size especially considering that they conducted the study in 32 states. It would far more beneficial when it came to analyzing the results of the data if the population pool was at least triple. The reason for this is because one cannot get an accurate read of what works and what does not in diversified care in a sampling that small. While a sampling size of around 100 hospitals would be able to give better insight into the situation, the ideal number of hospitals involved in a study of this type should be at least 1000.
“Cultural Competency: Providing Quality Care to Diverse Populations” by J. R Betancourt he did research on the subject of proving quality care to people of different cultures by primarily reviewing and researching the material that already existed.
Sampling Frame
In “One Size Does Not Fit All: Meeting the Healthcare Needs of a Diverse Population” the sampling that was used was taking from the sixty hospitals that has taken part in the HLC Study in 32 states. Fifty percent of the hospitals selected for the HLC study were chosen due to both the United States census of 1990 and 2000 along with the data that was provided by the American Hospital Association. The hospitals were chosen at random to participate in the study from areas that satisfied all the requirements that the researchers were looking for. These requirements included population size, racial and ethnic diversity, language, and nativity. The other 30 hospitals which were either nominated or had volunteered were used to ensure that the hospitals were making an effort to satisfy the cultural and language needs of their patients
Data Collection
In this case the collection of data in “One Size Does Not Fit All: Meeting the Healthcare Needs of a Diverse Population” qualitative in nature. This was because the data was collected during a one-day visit to each of the hospitals that were participating in the study. The data was collected between 2005-2006 by the staff of the HLC project and trained members of the research team. The interviews themselves were conducted by two individuals, who were a trained interviewer and a trained note taker. One of the two individuals conducting the interview was a member of the project staff at all times. All visits consisted of a number of interviews with administrative staff at the hospital as well as interviews with the men and women working on the floor who have contact with the patients on a systematic basis. The interviews with the administrative officials were done one on one with the CEO. Human resources and C&L service groups. These interviews consisted of three staff members from every area.
The people involved with the interview discussed the challenges faced by tier hospital when it came to providing care to patients who are culturally and linguistically diverse. They also discussed ways in which they could overcome these difficulties using what they see as the strengths of their institution. They also addressed the weaknesses of their current programs when it came to providing culturally diverse care.
“Cultural Competency: Providing Quality Care to Diverse Populations” Betancourt relies almost solely on the work of others. In some ways this is a better way to do things because it allowed Betancourt more time in which he could analyze the data that already existed. This made it possible for him to find information and trends that the original researchers may have missed.
Data Analysis
The study conducted in “One Size Does Not Fit All: Meeting the Healthcare Needs of a Diverse Population” started off with the question of whether or not the practices used to combat challenges with diversity be successfully implemented in other healthcare facilities. The two researchers did find a number of positively applied practices that were already in use in a number of the studied facilities. The research that was conducted relied solely on independent criteria because the HLC study was not able to validate or measure the efficiency of the practices that were deliberated during the interviews. There were coded practices which had to meet the following criterion in order for it to continue as a promising practice. (1) assistance when it came to continuing care (2) increasing language services and the number of multi-lingual staff (3) hire more competent staff (4) reduce the number of errors and the amount of risks taken by hospital staff (5) overall concentrate on improving the safety of the patients that are coming to the facility (6) the hospital also needs to take care in improving the financial status of the hospital while also providing patients with quality care. (7) the facility must also be able to respond to difficulties in a pioneering manner.
Betancourt found that the best way for healthcare facilities to be able to understand and benefit people who have differing cultural beliefs is to gain social competence. This will allow the healthcare workers to gain skills that help them in providing care to diverse patients that addresses their needs without misunderstandings. This would allow both parties the ability to have better communication and understanding of the patient’s needs and wants. This is done by looking at both the cross-cultural issues and discovering the impact that the illness is having on the patient as well as looking at the socio and economic situation of the patient. Finally, it is important to try to come to an understanding with the patient about the situation.
Findings
This section will look at the findings that were discovered one the interviews regarding the challenges of diversified care were completed.
Limitations
The limitations of the study were the small population pool that took place in the study. There is also that fact that there were no interviews conducted of former or current patients who were willing to speak of their experiences in regards to receiving diversified care.
Use and Application of Findings
The research that was conducted by “One Size Does Not Fit All: Meeting the Healthcare Needs of a Diverse Population” found that people of diverse backgrounds are more likely to utilize healthcare facilities that hire staff that are able to engage with them and understand their worries and needs. The findings may help contribute to the hiring of a more ethnically diverse staff and/ or doctors and administration who are better equip to address that fears and trepidations of people who are culturally and linguistically diverse.
Recommendation: Hiring more diverse staff.
One way that the issue of diversified care can be addressed is by hiring more staff members and doctors of various cultures and ethnicities. A hospital could also hire a kind of liaison/ mediator to act on the behalf of both the hospital and the patient. This may be an appropriate way in which to manage the challenge of diversified care because it would help facilitate communication and understanding between the hospital and the patients.
Recommendation: Intercultural Communications training or course.
A recommendation that would be beneficial is to have any staff member who would have regular access to patients complete a short course in intercultural communications. This helps one to better understand the differences of other cultures. In regards to what is offensive or polite. It can also help one know that best way to approach a person in order to address various issues. This should be the first option given in order to give the current the opportunity to improve their relationship and approach when it comes to the needs of patients who are culturally or linguistically diverse.
Recommendation: Patient Feedback
The final recommendation that should be implemented is to get feedback from the patients themselves. This will probably be difficult because people may not be comfortable speaking negatively about the hospital or staff. For fear that they will receive poor care the next time they seek treatment. Nevertheless, there should be a system of sort that is anonymous in which people can give feedback about the care that they received. While there are systems like this already in existence, it is crucial to make such systems accessible to linguistically diverse people.
Conclusion
While addressing the issue of diversification in healthcare facilities may seem like it is a daunting task there are many different ways that the healthcare administration and staff can work with patients in order to deal with their needs and fears. One such way to do this is through nursing theory which was actually designed in order to help with understanding and dealing with patients with diverse needs. The improvement in diversified healthcare will greatly benefit those who suffer from chronic illness. This is because they tend to need care from a variety of different types of specialists. The ability to be able to receive their care from doctors, who are located all within the same facility or working for the same hospital would be financially beneficial for the hospital. Many of the issues with diversification stems from the lack of resources and infrastructure. This is why it is hard to put programs in place to address the issue of patients living with AIDS/HIV. They need to decide what the needs are, the services that need to be provided and the equipment needed. This would involve a thorough analysis of the facility, its infrastructure and staff.
The problem is that in some cases it is not financially beneficial to provide the services within the facility, in this case it is better to recommend the patient to another hospital or specialist. In order to do this and remain financially successful as a healthcare facility one must have a continuing influx of clients. This means that the healthcare facility must be able to handle a number of complex needs. One way that this could be handled is by using an assessment in order to govern and handle various healthcare needs. This could allow for the products and services offered to be more diversified. The use of technology could also allow patients to make their religious and cultural preferences known. This would allow for the staff and administration to know of any preferences they may have and allow care to be provided to them without embarrassment on the part of the patient of the staff. Technology assessments can also be utilized in order to ascertain the cost outcome of providing diversified services.
As there is currently a shortage in human resources when it comes to diversified care. It is vital that students in medical school, the nursing program, etc. be provided with the skills needed to successfully interact with people from diverse cultures and religious backgrounds. This is why it is important that they take a course in cross-cultural awareness, or multi-culturalism. This would make it possible to avoid being offended by or offending someone of a different culture then one’s own. The result of this would be that more of the staff would be able to communicate and understand the needs of an individual from a diverse culture. This would then enable the person to obtain better and more accurate care.
Ultimately, making everyone feel welcomed at a healthcare facility is the best thing for the facility. This is because it allows for a constant influx of financial support, from the patients, the insurance programs, and from government grants, etc. This is turn makes it possible for all patients to receive better care, therefore increasing the hospitals profits.
References
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