Culture-Based Care in NYC

As you can see, part of the purpose for this blog is to keep you up to date with things happening in healthcare that related to cultural competency and diversity. Kaiser foundation recently published this article about the New York City Public Hospital System.

Culture-Based Care Hospitals in New York, Other Cities Increase Culturally Competent Care, Particularly Among Minorities With Diabetes
[Oct 23, 2007]

Medical professionals across the nation are "beginning to bone up" on culturally competent health care, in particular with diabetes, "given the rising incidence of the disease, its prevalence among minority groups and the changes in diet and lifestyle that treatment often entails," the Wall Street Journal reports. In New York City, nearly 50% of Asian-Americans have diabetes or pre-diabetes and about one-third of blacks and Hispanics have one of the conditions, compared with roughly 30% of whites. According to the Journal, the 50,000 diabetes patients at the city's 11 public hospitals speak "scores of languages" and are accustomed to "varied cuisines." Area hospitals have begun to tailor treatment and educational materials to minority populations, including making print information available in several languages, providing on-site cooking classes that focus on ethnic-specific recipes and offering a range of translation services. The public hospitals' electronic health record system is the "backbone" of the city's effort, the Journal reports. It allows providers to track clinical indicators, check when patients are due for certain exams and alert patients to missed appointments in their native languages.

For more. . .
http://www.kaisernetwork.org/daily_reports/rep_index.cfm?DR_ID=48391