Create a power point presentation based on the following paper and questions. Power point should have 20 slides in total. 1. Assess and include transcultural beliefs including language, religious prac

Running head: ASIAN-AMERICAN CULTURAL ASSESSMENT 0

Health Care

Asian-American Cultural Assessment

Asian-American Cultural Assessment

Burke (2019) defines culture as the set of established unique beliefs and behaviors that are conducted or practiced by a specific group of individuals that have been passed from generation to generation. It is quite evident that cultural background is playing a significant role in the majority of the ethnicities since it is considered as the foundation of many families. For this reason, conducting a cultural assessment is really necessary in every field, especially in the field of nursing wherein nurses study and analyze different cultures in order to better understand both the similarities and differences within different groups of patients with diverse cultures. Cultural assessment includes the process of reviewing the different components of culture, such as traditions, environment, social relations, values, and incentives. One of the ethnic groups situated in the United States of America is the Asian-American. They are the Americans from Asian ancestry that has originated in South Asia, East Asia, or Southeast Asia. According to Kiang (2019), Asian-American represents an estimated of more than 30 nationalities and ethnic groups such as Tongan, Samoan, Thai, Cambodian, Malay, Burmese, Filipinos, Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Indians, and much more.

Culturally, Asian families differ in culture, religion, and language. The demographics of Asian Americans can be categorized into three major groups, such as the East Asian Americans, South Asian Americans, and Southeast Asian Americans. In the United States of America, the Chinese language, Tagalog language, Vietnamese language, and Korean language are considered as sizeable Asian languages. In fact, the Chinese language is the third most common language across the nation. Regarding the religion of the Asian Americans, almost half of them are Christians (42%) followed by Buddhist (14%), Hindu (10%), Muslim (4%), other Religion (2%), and Sikh (1%). Also, it is found out that 26 percent of the Asian Americans are unaffiliated with any religion. Despite their religious differences, most of them are more likely to say that they seldom pray and attend religious services. According to some studies, more than 80 percent of Asian Americans across the United States of America celebrate Christmas, and an estimated 90 percent celebrate Thanksgiving. In addition, many of them maintain distinctive religious practices, including the Lunar New Year. Also, it is evident that some of the Asian Americans are keeping shrine or temple in their homes (Pew Research Center 2012).

Two of the key elements that draw the diverse cultures within Asian Americans are the composition of meals and the cooking techniques. Some of the staple foods for Asian Americans include rice, fish, and tea for Cambodian; rice, vegetables, and green tea for Chinese; rice, vegetables, seafoods, and fruits for Filipinos; rice, vegetables, meat, and fish for Hmong; cereals, rice, and vegetables for Asian Indian; rice, vegetables, and fish for Laotian; and rice, fish, and fruit for Vietnamese (Encyclopedia.com, 2019). On the other hand, substance abuse, unhealthy food choices, and sexual activities are some of the risky behaviors of Asian Americans (Lowry, Eaton, Brener, & Kann, 2011). Also, Asian Americans represent both extremes in regards to socioeconomic and health statuses —more than one million members of this group of population are living below the poverty line. Thus, poor socioeconomic status can be seen as a significant barrier in obtaining better health outcomes.

According to the Asian American Health Initiative. (2008), cancer is one of the major causes of mortality among Asian Americans, followed by heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. In addition, mental health issues are quite prevalent among elderly people. Despite the fact that Asian Americans are among the groups to have health insurance, still, it is a significantly large percentage of the population who lack a personal doctor. For such cultural reasons, Asian-American patients tend to consult their families regarding health care decisions since most of them value their consensus on this matter. Liu & Sharpe (2014) point out that consulting the family members before the healthcare professionals can delay important medical decisions since extended family consultation is quite time-consuming. In addition, the UMHS (2013) provides essential information regarding Asian Americans’ cultural and clinical issues such as there is no need to see a doctor if an individual feels well for traditional Chinese culture. Also, Asian Americans tend to use traditional treatments such as acupuncture and herbal medications at least once in their lives.

Kim & Keefe (2010) argue that the utilization of healthcare services by any group of individuals is determined by calculating the ratio of people who receive health care services against the number of the entire population. Majority of the ethnic groups among Asian Americans have been found that they are underutilizing healthcare services in comparison to their counterparts. The authors, Kim & Keefe, enumerates different barriers that hinder Asian Americans to access healthcare services. The barriers include language, culture, health literacy, health insurance, and immigrant status. First, language is considered as the most formidable barrier regarding Asian Americans' access to healthcare. The fact that majority of the Asian Americans are not proficient to the English language makes it quite challenging to seek healthcare services such as making appointments, locating healthcare facilities, acquiring information in regards to health conditions, and communicating with professionals. Also, the temporarily reversed family role wherein the children speak, read, and understand English better than their parents creates an awkward situation in the healthcare setting since the role of the children may feel uncomfortable in facilitating the elder members of the family, especially in making healthcare decisions. Another barrier is the health literacy since Asian Americans have been found out to have limited health literacy and usually have misconceptions regarding diseases that prevent them from acquiring and seeking appropriate healthcare services. For this reason, the lack of health literacy leads to poorer health outcomes. On the other hand, health insurance is considered as a major hindrance in regards to accessing care since employment is not the most appropriate predictor of health insurance for Asian Americans. Despite the fact that unemployment is quite low for Asian Americans, but the majority of them work for small business and usually have low-wage jobs that typically do not offer health insurance. In line with this, inadequately insured and uninsured Asian Americans might resort to affordable alternative medicine. They are likely to be knowledgeable regarding alternative medicine or procedures which many of them found to be effective. Lastly, immigrant status is also considered as a barrier for Asian Americans to access healthcare since there are several empirical pieces of evidence that suggest Asian Americans like any other ethnic group tend to have poorer health and frequent hospitalization. Specifically, illegal Asian immigrants experience health access issues because the majority of them are not allowed to hold jobs that provide health insurance (2010).

There are different ways to enhance the health of every ethnic group, particularly Asian Americans. These include improving access to healthy foods, increasing patient literacy, and improving the patient experience of care. According to Melnyk (2016), an evidence-based practice approach enhances the quality of healthcare, as well as patient outcomes. Also, this approach will likely reduce the related healthcare cost. When it comes to Asian Americans, improving the patient experience of care, including quality and satisfaction, are some of effective ways to enhance their health. Satisfying their needs and letting them know the importance of healthcare will improve the population's health. In addition, Kim et al. (2016) argue that translating research findings into evidence-based practices can also play a significant role for enhancing the health of Asian Americans since it will avoid the overutilization of ineffectual care, under usage of effective care, and errors in medical procedures or execution. Lastly, it will be effective to integrate Information and Communication Technology (ICT) such as the internet and different social media platforms in regards to disseminating information and promote health, as well as in developing training manuals and information for health professionals in order to improve one’s cultural competency.

References

Asian American Health Initiative. (2008). Asian American Health Priorities. Retrieved from http://sph.umd.edu/sites/default/files//files/Combined%20Reports.pdf

Burke, A. (2019). Cultural Awareness and Influences on Health: NCLEX-RN. Retrieved from https://www.registerednursing.org/nclex/cultural-awareness-influences-health/

Cheng, S., Suh, S., Morita, T., Oyama, Y., Chiu, T., & Koh, S. et al. (2015). A Cross-Cultural Study on Behaviors When Death Is Approaching in East Asian Countries. Medicine, 94(39), e1573. doi: 10.1097/md.0000000000001573

Encyclopedia.com. (2019). Asian Americans, Diets of. Retrieved from https://www.encyclopedia.com/food/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/asian-americans-diets

Kim, W., & Keefe, R. (2010). Barriers to Healthcare Among Asian Americans. Social Work In Public Health, 25(3-4), 286-295. doi: 10.1080/19371910903240704

Kim, K., Quinn, M., Chandrasekar, E., Patel, R., & Lam, H. (2016). Partnership for Healthier Asians: Disseminating Evidence-Based Practices in Asian-American Communities Using a Market-Oriented and Multilevel Approach. JMIR Research Protocols, 5(2), e123. doi: 10.2196/resprot.5625

Liu, D. & Sharpe, L. (2014). Though insured, many U.S. Asians lack a personal doctor. Retrieved from https://news.gallup.com/poll/176039/though-insured-asians-lack-personal-doctor.aspx

Lowry, R., Eaton, D., Brener, N., & Kann, L. (2011). Prevalence of Health-Risk Behaviors among Asian American and Pacific Islander High School Students in the U.S., 2001–2007. Public Health Reports, 126(1), 39-49. doi: 10.1177/003335491112600108

Melnyk, M. (2016). Improving healthcare quality, patient outcomes, and costs with evidence-based practice. Retrieved from https://www.reflectionsonnursingleadership.org/features/more-features/Vol42_3_improving-healthcare-quality-patient-outcomes-and-costs-with-evidence-based-practice

UMHS. (2013). Doctors and Diversity: Improving Health Care for Asian Americans. Retrieved from https://www.umhs-sk.org/blog/doctors-and-diversity-health-care-for-asian-americans-pacific-islanders/

Kiang, P. (2019). Understanding Our Perceptions of Asian Americans. Retrieved from https://asiasociety.org/education/understanding-our-perceptions-asian-americans

Pew Research Center. (2012). Asian Americans: A Mosaic of Faiths. Retrieved from https://www.pewforum.org/2012/07/19/asian-americans-a-mosaic-of-faiths-religious-practices/