Enhance Healthcare Access through Cultural Competency Training

How to Advance Healthcare Equity for Black Women

Although it's paramount to deliver quality healthcare, access is often a barrier. As discussed in Decolonizing Wellness, we must recognize the impact of institutional racism in reducing access to vital resources needed to support health and wellbeing (Kinsey, 2022). Moreover, for historically marginalized communities, such as Black women, lack of access can contribute to significant disparities.

However, we can address these inequalities by developing better cultural competency. This post will explore the importance of cultural competency training and how it can enhance access to care for Black women.

The Importance of Cultural Competency

Cultural competency enables healthcare providers to effectively work with diverse patient populations while considering their cultural backgrounds, beliefs, and needs. It encompasses everything from a provider's communication style to the influence a family has on healthcare decisions. As providers who work with diverse populations, it's essential to consider the impact of a person's culture on their healthcare decisions.

For instance, a Black woman may come from a cultural background emphasizing traditional medicine alongside conventional treatments. By understanding this belief, a provider can engage in respectful dialogue that explores treatment options that align with their patient's values and develop a care plan that integrates cultural preferences and evidence-based medicine. In doing so, providers can deliver respectful and effective care to individuals from different ethnic, racial, and cultural backgrounds.

Three Ways Cultural Competency Training Enhances Healthcare Access

Research has shown that a complex milieu of barriers impacts healthcare access for Black women (Chinn, Martin, & Redmond, 2021). Overcoming these barriers through cultural competency training can bridge the gap and increase access to care. Through this training, providers gain a deeper understanding of the cultural factors that affect access. With this knowledge, providers can develop strategies to eliminate these barriers and improve outreach efforts to Black women. Here are three ways providers can get started with utilizing cultural competency to enhance healthcare access:

#1 Reduce Bias in Healthcare

As you know, bias and discrimination within healthcare settings can have far-reaching consequences for Black women. Cultural competency training serves as a mechanism that can help healthcare providers recognize their biases and prejudices. They accomplish this by examining personal beliefs and attitudes that enable them to develop culturally sensitive approaches when interacting with Black women.

#2 Implement Inclusive Policies and Practices

We've mentioned that creating an inclusive healthcare environment for Black women requires more than individual-level changes. Cultural competency training can catalyze systemic transformation, allowing providers to implement inclusive policies and practices.

From language access to financial affordability, integrating cultural competence principles can ensure that services meet the unique needs of Black women.

#3 Collaboration and Community Engagement

While there are things that providers can do individually, they shouldn't dismiss the value of working with the communities where they serve. Cultural competency training encompassing a collaborative effort is crucial in developing effective strategies to improve access. By actively involving community members in shaping healthcare policies and practices, providers can affect the entire healthcare system and the communities it serves. In doing so, providers are better able to deliver a more patient-centered approach that genuinely reflects Black women's lived experiences and aspirations.

Addressing healthcare disparities and achieving equity for Black women requires a comprehensive approach that tackles systemic barriers and biases. Cultural competency training is a vital component of this approach, enabling healthcare providers better to understand Black women's unique needs and experiences and develop culturally sensitive and inclusive care.

References

Chinn, J.J., Martin, I.K., & Redmond, N. (2021). Health equity among Black women in the United States. Journal of Women's Health, 212-219.

Kinsey, D. (2022). Decolonizing wellness: A QTBIPOC-centered guide to escape the diet trap, health your self-image, and achieve body liberation. BenBella Books, Inc.