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Cultural Competency in the Garden State
New Jersey is one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse states in the nation.
More than 36 percent of the state’s population is black, Hispanic, Asian or Pacific Islander, or Native American or Alaskan Native. And more than one million New Jerseyans prefer to speak a language other than English, according to the 2000 U.S. Census.
This rich diversity presents a challenge to health professionals. Diverse populations bring different attitudes, expectations, beliefs and communication styles to each health encounter. Health professionals must be sensitive to these complex issues if they are to be successful.
Culturally competent health workers not only respect cultural differences, they incorporate them into the entire patient care or program planning process.
In the health care setting, this can require organizational change as well as more skilled one-on-one patient interactions. The public health community is also working to better understand the social and cultural gap between practitioners and the communities they seek to serve, and to find effective ways to bridge that gap.
The result in both cases can be better patient care, more effective public health interventions and, ultimately, better health in our communities.
DHSS Initiatives
Asthma -- The Asthma Awareness and Education Program has worked with the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s initiative, Learning Partnership to Decrease Disparities in Pediatric Asthma, to create a guidance document on developing asthma materials that are appropriate to specific populations. "Developing Culturally and Linguistically Competent Health Education Materials: A Focus on Asthma," provides the framework and tools necessary for organizations (e.g., state government, community-based organizations) to help develop appropriate materials that can increase awareness and compliance in the target populations.
Cancer -- The Cancer Education and Early Detection (CEED) Program funds comprehensive breast, cervical, prostate and colorectal cancer education, outreach, and screening activities. The program targets ethnic/racial minorities and those who are uninsured or underinsured and have limited income. The goal is to increase cancer awareness and decrease cancer deaths by emphasizing that “Early Detection is the Best Protection.”
Caregiving –- The Division of Aging and Community Services created CaregiverNJ, a web site for those in the community who care for senior citizens and adults with disabilities. The site is available in Spanish and features extensive caregiving resources, educational tools, and a searchable database by topic/county for help with housing, senior centers, finance, tax preparation, legal, medical, hospice, and transportation.
Diabetes -- The department’s Diabetes Initiative funds community- and faith-based organizations to identify in minority communities those who are diabetic and may not know it or who are not receiving health care services. Funded agencies provide educational information on how to prevent and control diabetes in the language spoken by the client. Linkages are provided to culturally appropriate and easily accessible services in their communities.
Language Access –- The Office of Minority and Multicultural Health's Language Access Initiative is increasing the amount of translated health education information and other material to help health care professionals provide more culturally competent care. So far, the initiative has:
Greatly expanded access to Spanish language health education documents on the department’s web site as well as a limited number of other documents in Hindi, Mandarin Chinese and Haitian Creole .
Created and distributed -- in conjunction with the New Jersey Hospital Association – a Communication Picture Board to help providers better communicate with patients who speak a language other than English.
Nutrition -- The Division of Aging and Community Services created the Mission Nutrition Program to increase the number of ethnic elders in the statewide nutrition program. The Latino Nutrition Coalition collaborates in developing recipes that will appeal to Spanish-speaking older adults. The program is also developing a resource directory of best practices that can be used to expand and improve services to diverse populations.
State of New Jersey, Department of Health and Senior Services
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