Educational Intervention: Culturally Competent Palliative Care

This report examines the importance of culturally competent palliative care for older adults, focusing on educational interventions designed to improve the quality of care. It highlights the benefits of cultural awareness training programs for healthcare staff, which can effectively integrate spirituality and cultural sensitivity into palliative care practices. The report references studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of web-based educational interventions and communication workshops in enhancing cross-cultural communication and promoting culturally responsive end-of-life treatment. A critical appraisal of the evidence acknowledges the positive impact of educational programs while also noting limitations such as small sample sizes and limited generalizability. The interventions ultimately aim to reduce disparities in end-of-life care and ensure that elderly patients receive culturally sensitive and appropriate support.

Name of the student:
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CULTURALLY COMPETENT WITH
PALLATIVE CAREIN THE OLDER PERSON

One intervention for providing culturally
competent care to elderly
Educational intervention like
training and education
programs related to cultural
awareness can improve the
quality of care provided to
elderly people.
It has the advantage of
improving cultural awareness
and sensitivity and supporting
staffs to effectively integrate
spirituality and culture within
palliative care
The intervention can be
delivered in different modes
like online features, interactive
dialogues and self-reflection
(Fang et al. 2016).

Evidence on one intervention to provide
culturally competent care
There are many peer-reviewed research evidence that has
revealed the effectiveness of educational intervention in
improving cross-cultural communication among palliative care
staffs. These include:
Doorenbos et al. (2010) investigated about the effectiveness
of web-based educational intervention in improving cross-
cultural communication about end-of life issues. The results of
the study revealed that web-based training programs are time
and cost effective in reducing disparities at end of life.
Lubimir and Wen (2011) used the intervention of introducing
the delivery of culturally responsive care in end of life
treatment in a communication workshop for future physicians.
All graduating medical students were able to engage in
culturally competent palliative care at the end of life.

Critical appraisal of the
evidence
Doorenbos et al. (2010) revealed educational
intervention as an effective intervention in
improving acquisition of knowledge related to
culture and cultural sensitivity in palliative
care. However, small sample size and
conducting research in a single urban center
limits the generalizability of the research
outcomes.
Lubimir and Wen (2011) was effective in
proving the positive impact of the education
program. Participants reported the
intervention as very helpful or engaging and
feedback from the faculty was also positive.

References:
Doorenbos, A. Z., Lindhorst, T., Schim, S. M., Van schaik, E., Demiris,
G., Wechkin, H. A., and Curtis, J. R. 2010. Development of a Web-
based educational intervention to improve cross-cultural
communication among hospice providers. Journal of Social Work in
End-of-Life & Palliative Care, 6(3-4), 236–255.
http://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2010.529022
Fang, M.L., Sixsmith, J., Sinclair, S. and Horst, G., 2016. A knowledge
synthesis of culturally-and spiritually-sensitive end-of-life care:
findings from a scoping review. BMC geriatrics, 16(1), p.107.
Kirby, E., Lwin, Z., Kenny, K., Broom, A., Birman, H. and Good, P.,
2018. “It doesn’t exist…”: negotiating palliative care from a culturally
and linguistically diverse patient and caregiver perspective. BMC
palliative care, 17(1), p.90.
Lubimir, K. T., and Wen, A. B. 2011. Towards Cultural Competency in
End-of-Life Communication Training. Hawaii Medical Journal, 70(11),
239–241.