Healthcare Unit Assignment: Working with Diverse People

This assignment solution addresses the complexities of working with diverse people in healthcare, providing definitions of key terms like diversity, cultural awareness, safety, and competence, as well as discrimination. It explores factors leading to miscommunication, ways to create a culturally safe environment, and examples of diversity in Australia. The solution further examines relevant laws, personal experiences with diversity, and case studies involving discrimination. It concludes with strategies for promoting understanding among international residents and addressing issues faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, offering a comprehensive overview of diversity's impact on healthcare practices and outcomes.

Running head: WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
Work with Diverse People
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
Question1: Definitions
Diversity:
The arena of medicine is such that it serves a diverse range of population. It is a highly
homogenous area of designation. Diversity is all about understanding the larger context of the
mindset of a patient or any other co-worker on the basis of gender, culture, sexual orientation,
socioeconomic realities and even religious beliefs. A lack of diversity in a heath care facility
leads the patients to seek other places where physicians are knowledgeable and approachable.
Cultural Awareness:
The approach of being aware of one’s cultural background including nationality and even
an individual’s life experience is Cultural awareness. In the field of health care, the competence
around cultural background of patients and other co-workers is helpful in terms of impeding a
deeper understanding of interactions which may otherwise be complex.
Cultural Safety:
Cultural safety in simple terms means a certain environment safe for the culture of a
certain group of people. However when it comes in the context of health care and health
professionals, the meaning slightly shifts. Cultural safety in that case means health professionals
to be able to perceive every patient in a way which is safe from beliefs such as institutional
racism and more.
Cultural Competence:
Cultural competence is another important ethical vale that should be present in any
workplace, especially that of healthcare. The ability of the health organization and the health

2WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
professionals to deliver the services of health care in an effective manner; that it meets the social,
linguistic and even cultural needs of the patient. Moreover, it improves communication between
workers and patients as well.
Discrimination:
The act of biasness on the grounds of caste, culture, race and sex is discrimination. Every
doctor takes an oath of treating every patient equally; however that does not take place at certain
circumstances, maybe due to the inherent racist system present in the workplace. Sometimes a
patient is treated less favorably for a certain characteristic or background, which is direct
discrimination. Indirect discrimination takes place when prevalent policies or practices have a
disadvantage on certain category of people.
Question 2: Ways of belonging to Diverse Culture.
The culture that different people of different age group presents is diverse. Diversity in
gender also is culturally diverse which is distinct. The physical ability of a person also
determines the diversity he has to face in the workplace. Discrimination is such an issue that is
faced by some on the grounds of the above factors. The Socioeconomic status and political
beliefs also are different culturally and are treated in a biased manner at certain times.
Question 3: Factors leading to Miscommunication in relation to Cultural
Diversity in Health care environment.
When a patient does not understand the language of the health professional or vice versa,
there is a huge chance of losing the patient to a more culturally competent health care facility
(Baillie & Matiti, 2013). Secondly, there is a distinct difference in the sign and style of

3WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
communication of a culturally diverse person which causes miscommunication. Thirdly the
difference in behavior and beliefs also poses a great threat of miscommunication.
Question 4: Ways a Clinic can be Safe to Invite Culturally Diverse People
Since a clinic is a place the chances of the arrival of culturally diverse people are high,
therefore it should take steps to invite more people with different cultural background and make
them feel safe around the facility. The facility can implement changes on the basis of cultural
competence assessment and also develop a program that is characterized by cultural competence
treatment with methods of treatment that can reflect cultural values and needs of the patient or
co-workers.
Question 5: Examples of how Australia is:
Politically Diverse:
The political leaders of Australia, estimating the population explosion by the year 2020,
have begun to focus more on the security and its economic priorities. They have developed the
Asian Century White Paper which lets the political leaders to include more Australian Asian
communities and are helping their skills with a strategy to develop Asian abilities.
Socially Diverse:
The social diversity is found in Australia when one comes to know that this land has the
most culturally and linguistically diverse population. A large part of the population is immigrants
yet the country covers each and every citizen’s rights irrespective of their social background.

4WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
Economically Diverse:
The economic diversity of Australia has enabled it to provide employment to a vast
majority of people pushing the statistics of unemployment from 6.2% to 5.9%. There is mining
that employs quite a few numbers of people; however, it has been seen that every four out of five
people are employed under services, which forms the largest component in Australian economy.
Culturally Diverse:
Most of Australia’s citizens were born overseas; at least one of the parents in most cases
is more likely to be from overseas. Near about 20% of the Australians speak in their own
language which is not English (Forrest & Dunn, 2013).
Impact of Diversity on Work and Life:
People of diverse background make an enormous contribution in Australian economy
system and people are more broad-minded when it comes to accept the diversity. Although there
are instances of discrimination against the immigrants, yet the positive impact weighs more over
the drawback.

5WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
Question 6: Laws
Act Aim/who does it protect? Example of what would be
considered discrimination
The Racial
Discrimination Act
1975
People from a diverse social, cultural
background
Insulting anyone or offending them on
the Basis of their class, race or
nationality.
The Sex
Discrimination Act
1984
People from being discriminated on the basis
of sexual orientation, gender, sexuality and
more.
Unequal wage in workplace on the
basis of gender.
Australian Human
Rights Commission
Act 1986
Every citizen of Australia has their civil and
political rights inviolate.
Not taking proper care of any child and
harming their health.
The Disability
Discrimination Act
1992
Any physically disable or mentally disabled
person’s rights are not violated through
discrimination.
Denying an employment opportunity
on the basis of a physical disability
ignoring the educational qualification.
Racial Hatred Act
1995
Stop hatred from spreading through racism Insult on the race of a person
Age Discrimination
Act 2004
Aged people’s rights that are discriminated
on the basis of their age in their workplace or
else.
The unequal wage provision on the
basis of old age.
Equal Opportunity
for Women in the
Workplace 1999
Women are treated equally even in
workplace.
Provision of a job to a male but not a
female on the basis of gender.

6WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
Question 7: Differences
Group 1 Group 2
Type of person you feel
uncomfortable around.
Culturally diverse Age wise diverse
How are they different
from you?
Belong to a different culture Belong to a different generation
Why do you think you
feel uncomfortable
around them?
The mismatch in culture
tends to create an uneasiness
in communication
The generation gap creates
miscommunication
Do you think you feel
this way as a result of
the impact of the
diverse practices or
personal experiences?
Yes Yes
List some similarities
between yourself and
this group of people.
Respect for one’s own
culture.
Similarities in ethical values and
moral values.
Method to understand:
Cultural competency can be used to understand the people and feel more comfortable
around them.
Question 8: Ways and Instances
a) Ways to improve and embrace Diversity
 A tem can be formed with diversity in itself and they can develop policies and regulations
regarding diversity

7WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
 Encourage cultural competency among workers as well as patients.
b) Instance of discrimination:
Once a patient came in for a treatment and in order to break the ice, a joke was cracked that
accidently implied racist comment. The patient chose not to re-visit for the treatment.
c) Instance of being discriminated:
Belonging from a different culture, co-workers once took a case from me, since they thought
that it would go against my cultural ethics.
Question 9: Case Studies
a) Robyn was discriminated on the grounds of gender; Equal Opportunity for Women in
Workplace, 1999 and also the Sex Discrimination Act. 1984
b) Maria was discriminated on the grounds of Age covered in Age Discrimination Act, 2004
c) Henry’s case covers the Racial Discrimination Act, 1975 along with Racial Hatred Act,
1995
d) Boris’ rights were discriminated according to the Disability Discrimination Act, 1992
Question 10: Promoting Understanding towards International Residents
 Contributing in participating and respecting the culture they follow
 Encourage the lingual diversity in workplace by developing policies and strategies.

8WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
Question 11: The Case of Kim
Keeping in mind with the principles and conventions under Australian Human Rights
Commission Act 1986, Kim was not discriminated on the basis of her disability and her work
was modified in such a way that let Kim’s rights were not violated.
Question 12: Issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
 They are discriminated racially; the emotional well-being of the people thus is affected
highly due to this discrimination (Cunningham & Paradies, 2013). The low emotional
well-being then leads to physical distress as well.
 The Aboriginal and Torres Islander people also suffer a lot due to the inefficiency that
they face in employment opportunities. It has been found that these people face racism at
their workplace too, making it difficult to continue with the work.
Question 13: In regards to communicating with people from diverse
background
c. It is better to refer the patient to another clinic in case there is a language barrier is a
step that is False.
Question 14: True/False
1. (False)
2. (True)
3. (True)
4. (False)

9WORK WITH DIVERSE PEOPLE
References:
Baillie, L., & Matiti, M. (2013). Dignity, equality and diversity: an exploration of how
discriminatory behaviour of healthcare workers affects patient dignity. Diversity &
Equality in Health & Care, 10(1).
Cunningham, J., & Paradies, Y. C. (2013). Patterns and correlates of self-reported racial
discrimination among Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults, 2008–09:
analysis of national survey data. International Journal for Equity in Health, 12(1), 47.
Forrest, J., & Dunn, K. (2013). Cultural diversity, racialisation and the experience of racism in
rural Australia: the South Australian case. Journal of rural studies, 30, 1-9.