Topic: Mental health
Cultural Competence Project Overview
The ultimate purpose of professional research is to solve a problem. Whether the researcher puts the results of the research in writing or just applies the new knowledge to personal practice is irrelevant. The need to apply critical thinking to finding solutions remains paramount. A nurses skill in making accurate decisions is rooted in their ability to find, evaluate, and analyze relevant, quality information.
The goal of the Cultural Competence project is to solve problems related to issues surround cultural differences as they apply to healthcare.
Culture can refer to: religion, race, ethnicity, age group, socioeconomic status, education, immigration status, country of origin, LGBTQ+ status, relationship status, insured status, etc.
Most people are members of multiple culture groups. Each of these groups can impact health-related behavior and health care. Health-related behavior can refer to personal health status, habits, lifestyle, health-seeking behavior and how one comprehends health care.
This assignment will utilize best evidence, clinical experience, and client preferences to:
1. Identify a problem related to culture and healthcare
2. Locate studies related to solving those problems or providing additional information which allows for a better understanding of the problem
3. Suggest appropriate nursing interventions to solve the problem
Best evidence articles (at least two articles meeting all 3 criteria below)
Less than five years
Peer reviewed
Must be found in CINAHL Library database
Clinical experience (may use one from this list)
Article written by a nurse specializing in the field
Personal interview with practicing nurse specializing in the field
Library databases
Class textbook
Client preferences
Possible client concerns
How does client culture impact their attitude toward healthcare?
Client group (cultural, religious, socioeconomic, etc.) preferences or beliefs
Possible questions to ask client to ascertain preferences
Cultural Competence Written Assignment Guidelines
Paragraph 1:
What is the cultural group? Why was this group selected? Maybe you include an interesting statistic here. If you do, be sure to get the most up-to-date data directly from the organization that did the study. Define the health-related issue (problem) that will be addressed in the paper. This should be about 3 sentences long.
Paragraph 2:
Summarize the best evidence of possible solutions or deeper understanding. What (if any) evidence did you find? How was the evidence tested? What did the researchers learn? If nothing was found, explain why you think that was. This should be about 5 or 6 sentences long.
Paragraph 3:
Summarize expert opinion. This could be an article from a nursing journal or a personal interview. Does this expert have a suggestion for how to solve the problem or provide information to better understand the problem? This should be 5 or 6 sentences long.
Paragraph 4:
Summarize relevant client values. What client values impact care in relation to this issue? What questions could a nurse ask to ascertain client preferences? Does the culture have any impact on health? Are there resources that explain the problem from the patients point of view? This should be 5 or 6 sentences long.
Paragraph 5:
For your conclusion, suggest a solution to the problem. What should a nurse do, based on what was learned from the research presented? Solutions must be related to nursing practice. Solution cannot suggest what other professionals or patients themselves should do. Solutions should be specific. How should a nurse care for a client in this cultural group because of what was learned in the research? This should be about 3 or 4 sentences long.
CONCLUSION GUIDELINES
Presentation of problem is relevant to nursing practice only, not other professionals or patients.
Problem still exists (has not been solved).
Resources presented appropriately pertain to solving problem presented.
Conclusion should not be a complete restatement (summary) of the contents of the paper.
Solutions (conclusion) are based on research presented and related to nursing practice.
Nursing implication(s) should be clearly explained and specific.
Incorrect: Nurses should educate clients.
Correct: Nurses should educate clients on proper use of oxygen.
(this would be a solution to the problem that clients do not understand the proper use of oxygen BECAUSE nurses have failed to educate them)
Cultural Competence Project Topic: Mental Health
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliations
Cultural Competence Project Topic: Mental Health
Nurses should be in a position to engage in professional research with the aim of collecting evidence to solve a clinical practice problem. The cultural group that will be the focus of this assignment is persons with mental illnesses with strong religious beliefs that encourage believers to refrain from using medications. Members of this religious group believe that they can be healed of their health problems when they pray but not when they take medications. The reason for selecting this group is the increased number of emergency department visits among patients with mental illnesses standing at about 4.9 million a year in the United States (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). The health-related issue or problem that the paper will address is the lack of medication adherence among adults with mental illnesses because nurses have failed to provide appropriate education regarding medication use.
Published literature contains evidence that detail how best nurses can address the lack of medication adherence among patients with mental illnesses. The reviewed articles address the question “what if nurses taught patients with mental illnesses about medication use at the time of discharge.” From the literature, the best evidence of a possible solution is to implement culturally-tailored patient education programs that address medication use and the importance of medication adherence on health outcomes (Loots et al., 2021; Deng et al., 2022; Kvarnström et al., 2021). Loots et al. (2021) and Kvarnström et al., (2021) tested the evidence by conducting systematic reviews of randomized controlled trials. Deng et al. (2022) tested the evidence by conducting a qualitative study with 31 mental health professionals. The researchers learned that providing culturally-tailored education to patients with mental illnesses regarding medication use promotes medication adherence and enhances recovery.
Opinions from experts with advanced knowledge in specific nursing specialty areas can influence nursing practice. An expert opinion that nurses can utilize to address the problem of lack of medication adherence among adults with mental illnesses has been presented by Joseph Parks, a Medical Director from the National Council for Behavioral Health. According to Parks (2020), culturally-appropriate medication education is an effective strategy for promoting medication adherence among patients with mental health or behavioral health issues. The expert asserts that such educational programs should cover patient factors such as beliefs about health and treatment, disease-related factors such as the risk factors for mental problems, therapy-related factors such as dosing and enhanced patient-provider relationships, and socio-economic factors such as medication affordability. During education, the nurse should seek to understand why a patient is not taking medication or why he/she is using the prescribed drugs incorrectly. Nurses should design patient education programs in a manner that will address factors that are preventing appropriate drug use.
Patients’ values have an influence on their health-related behaviors such as medication use. Client values that impact care in relation to the issue under discussion are related to the availability or lack of alternative treatment options to medications. The client is not using medications because drug use is against his religious beliefs yet the nurse has not provided alternative options to drugs that he can use to manage his condition. In order to ascertain the client’s preferences, the nurse should ask about the concerns that might be preventing the patient from using the prescribed medications. From this scenario, it is evident that culture has an impact on the health of the patient because a lack of medication adherence leads to poor health outcomes (Deng et al., 2022). Kvarnström et al. (2021) explain the problem of lack of medication adherence among mental health patients from the patient’s point of view by explaining that patients with chronic mental illnesses such as schizophrenia need individualized culturally-appropriate education from their healthcare providers to be able to take their medications correctly.
A solution to a clinical practice problem should be informed by evidence from research. The best solution to the lack of medication adherence among patients with mental illnesses is to provide a culturally-appropriate education regarding medication use at the time of discharge. Based on the evidence in the published literature, nurses should implement culturally-tailored patient education programs that address medication use and the importance of medication adherence. When providing education, the nurse should consider patient factors such as cultural and religious beliefs about health and treatment. Besides, the nurse should encourage patients to continue praying and take their medications as prescribed.
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). Mental health. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/mental-health.htm
Deng, M., Zhai, S., Ouyang, X., Liu, Z., & Ross, B. (2022). Factors influencing medication adherence among patients with severe mental disorders from the perspective of mental health professionals. BMC Psychiatry, 22(1), 22. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-021-03681-6
Kvarnström, K., Westerholm, A., Airaksinen, M., & Liira, H. (2021). Factors contributing to medication adherence in patients with a chronic condition: A scoping review of qualitative research. Pharmaceutics, 13(7), 1100. https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics13071100
Loots, E., Goossens, E., Vanwesemael, T., Morrens, M., Van Rompaey, B., & Dilles, T. (2021). Interventions to improve medication adherence in patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(19), 10213. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph181910213
Parks, J. (2020). Clinical strategies to promote medication adherence. http://www.thenationalcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Clinical-Strategies-to-Promote-Medication-Adherence-6.20.18.pdf?daf=375ateTbd56