Cultural Advocacy, Constraints, Determinants and Technology in Health Care

Short Essays
Student’s Name
Institution
Short Essays
Question 1
Cultural competency refers to the ability of healthcare workers to provide care that is respectful to diversity and cultural factors that affect the delivery of care (Garrido, Garcia-Ramirez, & Balcazar, 2019). These factors include cultural beliefs, values, attitudes as well as language and communication style, among others. To be culturally competent, healthcare workers need cultural awareness, skills, and knowledge about their own culture as well as that of others. Cultural competency and advocacy involve promoting cultural competence through learning and interactions with people from different cultural backgrounds.
An example that demonstrates my skill level in cultural competency and advocacy is my ability to adjust my communication style to fit the different cultural contexts. For instance, when dealing with an American patient and a Chinese patient, my approach to eye contact while communicating with them is different. I adjust accordingly because I understand that among the Americans, maintaining eye contact during communication is important and is considered a sign of respect while among the Chinese, maintaining eye contact is considered a sign of disrespect.
Question 2
Assessing the effectiveness of case management services in reducing healthcare costs is important. The study by Wansink et al. (2016) investigated the cost-effectiveness of a case management intervention in promoting the quality of parenting among children of parents with mental illness (COPMI). According to the researchers, COPMI experience poor parenting, which negatively impacts their development and increases the risk of developing behavioral issues. Participants were randomly assigned to an intervention and a control group in a randomized controlled trial. The intervention, known as preventative basic care management (PBCM), provided preventative services to families of COPMI. The results of the study revealed that the intervention promoted better parenting quality and as such, was an effective approach to reducing/preventing the negative effects associated with poor parenting quality. However, when compared to standard care, the intervention was more costly. The researchers concluded that the study provides insights that can be helpful to community policymakers regarding healthcare policy in the context of limited financial resources.
Question 3
Referrals ensure that clients receive appropriate care and support to help promote their well-being. Yet, clients do not always follow through on a referral to an outside agency. One of the situational constraints that affect clients is related to the long waitlists before they can receive care in an outside agency. Most referrals are necessary but long waitlists affect access to referral services. According to Lewis et al. (2018), the time that clients wait from the time of referral to their first visit influences their patient experience. This may affect their attitude towards referrals and hinder them from following through on a referral.
A case manager can eliminate or minimize the effect of this constraint by assessing the wait time before deciding where to refer the client. Case managers have the respo...