Giger and Davidhizar's Transcultural Assessment Model

Introduction to the Model

Cultural diversity in health institutions affects medical practice. Health care providers and patients demonstrate different cultural characteristics, which necessitate transcultural nursing. Transcultural nursing entails an emphasis on comparative all-inclusive patient care regarding how similar and different their beliefs, values, and lifestyles are with the aim of providing health care that is culturally congruent, important, and beneficial (McFarland & Wehbe-Alamah, 2014). Culturally competent nursing leads to patient satisfaction improving the outcomes. The development of the Giger and Davidhizar’s Transcultural Assessment Model in 1988 was meant to provide guidelines on the evaluation and provision of care for patients from different cultural backgrounds. The model evaluates the cultural values of patients regarding health and disease, establishing their impacts. It also guides the nurses to understand the society’s cultural structure and provide adequate care.

The model emphasizes the importance of taking into account the uniqueness of individuals when selecting a suitable care model. The framework is used to assess various cultural phenomena, which include communication, time, space, biological variations, social organization, and environmental control (Giger, 2014). Communication occurs in the context of space to facilitate sharing of information, thereby, guiding human interactions and behavior. The spoken language, volume, vocabulary, and pronunciation are crucial communication aspects that transmit and preserve culture. A patient’s social organization, the family, relates to culture, whereas time determines the type of medical care required. Besides, environmental control gives an individual the ability to control the ways in which nature affects them. Additionally, biologic variations explain the genetic variations among individuals of different races, hence, aiding in the cultural assessment of patients. The paper explores how the Giger and Davidhizar’s transcultural assessment model presents a framework for providing nursing care in a culturally competent manner to patients with different cultural backgrounds

Application of the Model in Nursing Practice

As a transcultural framework, the stated model is applicable in nursing practice. Based on the diversity of the U.S. population, training on cultural competency is crucial in the enhancement of understanding patients’ values, norms, and beliefs. With the knowledge and skills obtained during training, one will be able to utilize the Giger and Davidhizar’s Transcultural Assessment Model to provide patient-centered care. It is important for student nurses to continually strive to offer the best care that is within the cultural context of the patient  (Kersey-Matusiak, 2012). The six dimensions of the model form the basis of medical decision-making in the assessment of patients.  Formulating questions based on cultural phenomena helps in choosing the most appropriate healthcare strategy to employ. Consequently, the provision of health care is consistent with the needs of the client and promotes patient satisfaction.

The set of questions that are used in assessing a patient will determine the required nursing intervention. Face to face interaction with patients eases detection of healthcare needs (Giger, 2014). For instance, an emotional tone can be used to express the gravity of the condition. Additionally, the body posture can ease identification of the ailing parts. Dealing with many patients enables nurses to understand how rules on personal distance vary among cultures, so they know the right verbal and non-verbal techniques to use in communication. Knowing the family background including religious beliefs of a patient is also essential in informing healthcare decisions (Holland & Hogg, 2010). Moreover, it is also helpful to examine the environmental set up of an individual to establish the health beliefs that would affect the provision of care.

Clinical Scenario

A clinical situation in which a nursing student is instructed to conduct an evening rotation in a cardiac unit that requires the administration of digoxin orally when necessary is considered. During the first rotation, the student encountered an elderly American woman. The student chose to take into consideration culture and inquire about patient’s beliefs regarding her condition as part of the nursing care. The student nurse maintained eye contact during the interview with the patient to determine if the patient had any particular preferences. The elderly woman was eloquent and spoke openly about her heart condition by providing its history. The student was able to determine that the woman had sought treatment as soon as there was a change in the pulse rate. The student discovered that being an American, the patient’s belief was that it was possible to control nature to meet personal needs.

Also, the patient felt that God’s intervention would assist in solving the heart complication. After the cultural assessment, the student evaluated the apical pulse rate of the patient to establish if the heart was functional. Additionally, the nursing student measured the patient’s serum digoxin level to determine if it was necessary to administer more medication. The student demonstrated empathy and was able to gain the patient’s trust; thus, the patient was able to express her feelings and ideas confidently. The patient expressed her gratitude on the advice concerning the daily self-assessment of the pulse rate and on taking medication after her discharge. Understanding the drug’s side effect better, the patient promised to comply with the medical regimen and make follow-up visits whenever necessary.

Conclusion

Demographic patterns contribute to cultural diversity necessitating a difference in nursing practice. Healthcare institutions should adopt culturally congruent care to meet the needs of patients with different values, lifestyles, beliefs, traditions, and practices. A nurse has to be empowered to become culturally competent so as to integrate transcultural nursing into practice. In this sense, a nurse will have cognitive, practical, and affective skills for providing culturally sensitive care. Using the cultural model helps a nurse in acknowledging patients’ cultural uniqueness and guiding the provision of care.