Background: Healthcare professionals meet patients with different cultural backgrounds. The patient’s culture can influence his view on health and disease, which indicates that cultural competence is an important feature of healthcare professionals in order to provide care with respect for the cultural differences that exist. Previous research shows that lack of knowledge for different cultures can lead to arising of poor attitudes at the healthcare professionals, which in turn can lead to discrimination. Healthcare professionals feel that there may be difficulties in caring for patients with different cultures as communication barriers. Aim: The aim of this thesis was to compile current research findings that illustrate how patients with different cultural backgrounds can experience the encounter with the medical care and which factors that can affect the experience. Method: A literature review based on 12 qualitative studies. Result: The way healthcare professionals act influences how people experience encounter in health care. The patients felt they were treated with respect. They experienced involvement and empathy, which strengthened the care relationship. They considered that they were seen as unique individuals by healthcare professionals and experienced equality in the encounter. Patientes felt that the experience of the encounter impaired due to language barriers. These communication barriers led to patients having a passive attitude in the care relationship and the patients experienced lack of participation. Patient felt that the encounter improved if the healthcare professionals were culturally competent. Patients did not experience any discrimination in the encounter, however, other patients considered that a poor encounter and prejudices among healthcare professionals could lead to patients feeling inferior. Conclusion: This literature review illustrates how patients with different culture backgrounds experience the encounter with the medical care and obstacles that can occur and complicate the medical encounter. The healthcare professionals should have knowledge about how patients with different culture backgrounds experience the medical encounter in order to apply it in health care and to give individualized care.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-339182 |
| Date | January 2018 |
| Creators | Blom, Louise, Ienea, Olivia |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för folkhälso- och vårdvetenskap, Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för folkhälso- och vårdvetenskap |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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