Introduction: Cultural and Linguistic Competence
The Cultural and Linguistic Competence Policy Assessment (CLCPA) is a self-evaluation test used for competency assessment in healthcare. It is designed to support community health centers. It is focused on improving healthcare access and utilization, enhancing the service quality for culturally diverse and underserved communities, and promoting linguistic and cultural competence as crucial elements of removing health disparities (“Self-Assessments,” 2017). This reflection paper will present an organizational assessment example of the author’s healthcare organization. Using the CLCPA instrument, the essay will evaluate the cultural and linguistic competence outlined in policies and demonstrated in clinical practice. Linguistic competence in healthcare deals with providers’ ability to meet patients’ linguistic needs. Healthcare cultural competence refers to the capacity to provide care to individuals with various values and beliefs.
Organizational Assessment Example
Diverse Communities
The section devoted to the knowledge of diverse communities revealed that our agency is adequately familiar with the various communities present in the service area. The social strengths and social problems are often discussed in relation to the provision of the service. Known health disparities exist in the area and are progressively being addressed. Different languages and cultural beliefs are acknowledged by the agency and policies are put in place to resolve any issues that might arise. The questions from this section have not gotten a rating lower than fairly well.
Organizational Philosophy
The organizational philosophy section confirmed that the agency is focused on incorporating culture into service delivery. The agency often advocates for quality of life issues among various communities and the most relevant procedures are used to deliver culturally competent services. We often attempt to provide childcare support and transportation to consumers in need, and we provide signs and reading materials in Spanish and Chinese. None of the questions received negative scores in this section.
Personal Involvement
The personal involvement section revealed a small issue, however. Attendance for cultural or ceremonial events is rarely provided. However, previous instances of such events have been recorded. Other aspects scored acceptably. We exercise the practice of purchasing and subcontracting from a variety of vendors often. Community education is also a priority within the agency.
Community Networks
The resources and linkages section showcased the amount of work our agency puts into the creation of partnerships with communities and other businesses to improve the service provided for culturally diverse communities of the area. Resources are often used to fulfill this goal, and the community as a whole greatly benefited from them.
Human Resources in Healthcare
The human resources section put attention on the issue where not all the positions are represented by culturally and linguistically diverse individuals. Although some high positions of the administrative staff are filled with people from diverse backgrounds, positions of clerical and support staff are not. However, a policy exists to provide opportunities for people from these groups. In addition, the staff is often trained to be culturally and linguistically competent during in-service training.
Culturally Competent Healthcare
The clinical practice section continues the moderately positive results with the use of diagnostic and treatment protocols that were adapted for culturally diverse groups. Racial and cultural identity is differentiated by the request of the client. Unfortunately, translation services are seldom evaluated, and this area requires additional attention.
Community Engagement in Healthcare
Finally, the engagement section shows that activities performed by the agency to engage culturally diverse communities of the area are providing positive outcomes. These activities are often accompanied by the free distribution of relevant medical brochures designed for diverse communities according to our research (Jeffreys, 2015). Both are supported by the policy of the agency. The majority of the agency’s outreach is focused on places of worship, ethnic publishers (especially radio stations), and human service agencies. The overall result of the self-assessment is positive and shows that the agency exhibits a moderate to a high level of cultural and linguistic competence.
Conclusion
The CLCPA is used to ensure that community health centers provide service to people from all the cultural groups within the community. The evaluation revealed a few issues that need to receive additional attention. However, the majority of the self-assessment was positive which suggests a level of cultural and linguistic competence.
References
Self-assessments. (2017). Web.
Jeffreys, M. (2015). Teaching cultural competence in nursing and health care (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company.