Reading Head: CULTURE AND DIVERSITY IN HEALTHCARE CULTURE AND DIVERSITY IN HEALTHCARE Title Name of the Student University Course Title Assignment Title Month, Year Executive Summary Diversity and cultural competence in the workforce are of utmost importance not only in the field of healthcare but also in other sectors. The paper will look at the importance of diversity and a culturally competent workforce such as the growth of mutual respect, trust and reduced misunderstanding and costs in a healthcare setting. A step to step plan to recruit, hire and retain a diverse workforce is also included in this paper, outlining the major steps leaders should follow to attain the same. A diverse workforce is attainable if leaders are willing to accept change and teach others in the organization to accept the same. The paper will further look at ways an organization can retain its diverse workforce and a plan on how it can train and develop the skill of their staff through cultural awareness. Leadership greatly affects the cultural competence of staff members. The paper proves that the cultural competent nature of the leader is what is transferred to the employee. If a leader is competent, then the staff will also be culturally competent. At the end of the paper, benefits of academic and research skills attained as a practitioner-scholar will be discussed, concluding the overall importance of a diverse and culturally competent workforce. Introduction Cultural diversity is one of the most important aspects of today's healthcare sector. The nursing sector in the healthcare industry is an example of how knowledge and understanding of cultural diversity are important when it comes to customer health and safety. The patient population in many countries is composed of culturally different people. Culture is defined as the norms, beliefs, and attitudes that a particular group of people has. In fact, we all have cultural diversity through our religions, ethnic differences, national origins and at times gender. It is hard for any healthcare facility opened to members of the public to offer their services to people with just one culture. These diversities are the main reason for the understanding and adoption of cultural diversity strategies in healthcare facilities, ensuring efficiency in the services offered to patients from all walks of life (Optimum Health Inc, 2017). Cultural competence in healthcare can be defined as the ability of the healthcare provider to meet the social, cultural and linguistic needs of their patients. A diverse and competent workforce is very important to the healthcare organization they work with and to the community that they serve. A culturally competent workforce facilitates the growth of mutual respect between healthcare patients and workers. When a worker is culturally competent,.

1. Reading Head: CULTURE AND DIVERSITY IN
HEALTHCARE
CULTURE AND DIVERSITY IN HEALTHCARE
Title
Name of the Student
University
Course Title
Assignment Title
Month, Year
Executive Summary
Diversity and cultural competence in the workforce are of
utmost importance not only in the field of healthcare but also in
other sectors. The paper will look at the importance of diversity
and a culturally competent workforce such as the growth of
mutual respect, trust and reduced misunderstanding and costs in
a healthcare setting. A step to step plan to recruit, hire and
retain a diverse workforce is also included in this paper,
outlining the major steps leaders should follow to attain the
same. A diverse workforce is attainable if leaders are willing to
accept change and teach others in the organization to accept the
same.

2. The paper will further look at ways an organization can retain
its diverse workforce and a plan on how it can train and develop
the skill of their staff through cultural awareness. Leadership
greatly affects the cultural competence of staff members. The
paper proves that the cultural competent nature of the leader is
what is transferred to the employee. If a leader is competent,
then the staff will also be culturally competent. At the end of
the paper, benefits of academic and research skills attained as a
practitioner-scholar will be discussed, concluding the overall
importance of a diverse and culturally competent workforce.
Introduction
Cultural diversity is one of the most important aspects of
today's healthcare sector. The nursing sector in the healthcare
industry is an example of how knowledge and understanding of
cultural diversity are important when it comes to customer
health and safety. The patient population in many countries is
composed of culturally different people. Culture is defined as
the norms, beliefs, and attitudes that a particular group of
people has. In fact, we all have cultural diversity through our
religions, ethnic differences, national origins and at times
gender. It is hard for any healthcare facility opened to members
of the public to offer their services to people with just one
culture. These diversities are the main reason for the
understanding and adoption of cultural diversity strategies in
healthcare facilities, ensuring efficiency in the services offered
to patients from all walks of life (Optimum Health Inc, 2017).
Cultural competence in healthcare can be defined as the ability
of the healthcare provider to meet the social, cultural and
linguistic needs of their patients. A diverse and competent
workforce is very important to the healthcare organization they
work with and to the community that they serve. A culturally
competent workforce facilitates the growth of mutual respect
between healthcare patients and workers. When a worker is
culturally competent, they understand the beliefs and cultural
practices of their patients avoiding cultural invasion which is a
sign of respect. The same is reciprocated by a patient who feels

3. they are understood by the healthcare providers. It also
increases trust between the patient and the healthcare providers
(Alliance Behavioral Healthcare, n.d.). Patients develop more
trust in organizations they feel understand their physical, social,
spiritual and cultural needs. The patients participate more in
healthcare processes as they feel they also have control over
their health and the treatments they get. Patients will therefore
not miss appointments as they look forward to receiving
treatment from an understanding institution and it also reduces
medical errors that may arise due to patient's lack of
cooperation in the treatment. In light of the above, culturally
competent workforce and the organizations they work for can
avoid legal costs and at the same time improve patient outcome
greatly. A culturally diverse workforce is a key to increasing
cultural competency in a healthcare institution, increasing
patient satisfaction and the quality of health care offered
(Betancourt et al., 2016).
Culturally Competent and Diverse Workforce Plan
Assign a leader to carry out the task
Choose a leader is culturally competent and able to attract such
talent to the organization. In most cases, the human resource
manager is in charge of the recruitment process. Accountability,
responsibility and leadership skills will be essential when
selecting a diverse workforce (Chuang, 2013).
Get the word out
Advertise positions vacant in various places including
community boards, employment agencies, newspapers, and
newsletters, visual and audio media among others. The leader
should ensure every channel of communication available is used
to advertise job openings. If regular channels and contact of
usual suspects are used, then the workforce will not be diverse.
The word should get out to all members of the community.
Build relationships with cultural groups and organizations
These groups work with diverse communities and can be a
source of a diverse workforce. Immigrant-serving agencies, for
example, can provide information on the workforce available to

4. perform a certain task and provide employment advice to the
organization (Gilliss, Powell & Carter, 2010). Use of websites
run by such organizations will enable the organization to have
access to local connections to diverse talents. The organization
should also embark on efforts to promote them as a viable place
to work.
Develop an unbiased interview process
Interviewing can be done by one person or a panel of qualified
professionals. The final decision, on which candidates to take
up for the job, will be made by the program leader probably the
HR manager. Biases should be eliminated when it comes to the
interview as it affects the selection of new talent to the
organization. Everyone involved in the hiring process should
follow a set of clear and consistent guidelines, to reduce
misunderstanding. Stereotyping is a common practice in the
hiring process, and only one person in the organization should
deal with resumes, to avoid biased omissions of some due
stereotyping. The recruitment philosophy should focus on the
skills one has regardless of when or how long it took to develop
such skills. Subjective language should be avoided during the
recruitment process as it can exclude qualified candidates
without knowing the benefits they might bring to the
organization (Gilliss, Powell & Carter, 2010).
Create a diverse workforce retention plan
Following all the above steps will ensure the talent recruited is
culturally competent and diverse. However, the question will be
on how to retain the talent in the organization. Personalizing
retention plans ensure worker retention in that the organization
can understand upfront why a diverse employee would stay or
leave the organization. Offering incentives to the diverse
workforce will increase worker retention. In light of the above,
the organization should offer bonuses, stock options and raises,
competitive benefit packages such as insurance and retirement
benefits among others.
Implementation and Evaluation
The last part of the plan is to implement all the above and make

5. sure that the plan is followed to the later. It will ensure hiring
of a diverse workforce. Evaluation and assessment through
measuring diversity, diversity turnover and the impact it has on
the organization will also be very important (Gilliss, Powell &
Carter, 2010).
Plan for providing employee training on cultural awareness and
sensitivity
Identifying training and development need of the workforce
It is the first thing in the plan, where the leader will identify the
training needs his/her workforce might have. Knowing the needs
will ensure that the training program is in context and helps in
employee professional development (Tomalin & Stempleski,
2013).
Recruit a professional trainer
The one offering the training should have knowledge and skill
in cultural competence and be a sociable person who the
employees will feel free and comfortable to interact with. He
should know matters affecting the organization's employees
regarding cultural competence.
Develop what will be done during the training beforehand
Before the training, the leader should know exactly what the
employees will be trained on. To improve cultural competence
and skill of existing staff, training should be on:
Communication
The employees will be trained on better ways to communicate
with each other, or to other people especially those who are
culturally different from them. Training employees to improve
the way they communicate will increase understanding and
respect within the organization and between the organization
and the community. The above is because employees are the
face of the organization and how they communicate a great
impact on the organization and community they serve (Tomalin
& Stempleski, 2013).
Interpersonal Skills
Employees will be trained on how to improve skills such as

6. self-confidence, being a team player, positive attitude, critical
and creative thinking to solve problems among others.
Acceptance to change
Employees will be trained on ways to incorporate cultural
competence, accept and welcome new diverse workforce and
support management in search of diverse talent.
Informing employees of a training program
Inform the employees of the training program before so that
they can prepare themselves psychologically, physically and
mentally for the same (Delgado et al., 2013).
Benefits of a diverse and culturally competent workforce
There is a direct relationship between the communities and
healthcare organizations. The communities rely on the
healthcare organization for their safety and health while the
organizations depending on the communities as they are the
source of their existence. The two variables work hand in hand,
and one cannot work without the other. A diverse workforce has
benefits to both the organization and the community.
Diversity drives creativity and innovation, where leveraging the
diverse differences in skills of employees allows a company to
be more innovative in coming up with solutions to problems.
Diversity creates a culture of respect within the organization
and to the community that the workforce serves, creating
peaceful coexistence and sharing of ideas without fear of
rejection. Diversity also leads to employee satisfaction,
reducing the rates of turnover, which is a benefit to the
organization as additional legal and other costs associated with
the turnover of a diverse workforce are eliminated (Irby-Butler,
2017, p. 67-68).
It also increases the market capture for the healthcare
organization. Customers/patients that get services from a
culturally competent and diverse workforce want to be able to
always relate to the organization. Patients grow a personal
relationship with the workforce and always want to be part of
the team. A diverse workforce has a better knowledge of the
needs of the community, and they are more engaged in

7. community activities that help meet these needs. Diversity and
cultural competence also change the way people in the
community relate to each other (Carter, 2017).
Leadership and the development of a diverse and culturally-
competent workforce
Leadership influences the development of a diverse and
culturally competent workforce through the skills they employ
when carrying out their duties. A good leader should be able to
manage culturally diverse settings with ease as they have
cultural quotient and intelligence. A study by Marie and
Vincent showed that the competence of healthcare staff was
associated with the cultural competence of the leader (Dauvrin
& Lorat, 2015).
Academic skills and research
Academic and research skills developed as a practitioner-
scholar helps in one's role as a healthcare leader in the
following ways: one is that the information on culturally
competent leadership helps one acquire knowledge of the
diversity in the healthcare system. It helps them to grow as
leaders that respect and appreciate diversity regarding
employees and even the clients they lead. These skills help in
developing critical thinking, conflict resolution and decision
making techniques one can use for effective leadership. The
academic and research skills are also employed while solving
matters affecting a certain community or the organization at
large (Connerley & Pedersen, 2005). Leaders with academic and
research skills are more credible as they are good in their
communication, respectful and humble, have positive attitudes
and commitment to their jobs.
Conclusion
Diversity is important not only to healthcare organizations but
also to the community that they serve. Cultural diversity and
competence promote peaceful coexistence, respect, and trust
among healthcare providers and members of the community
served. It also creates room for creating friendly relationships
that improve the quality of healthcare services patients have,

8. improving their health and benefiting the community in general.
Leaders influence the culturally competent nature of employees.
They must display a high degree of cultural competence,
formulating plans to create cultural awareness and develop the
professional skills and diverse nature of their workforce. A
diverse workforce leads to more creativity and innovation in an
organization, a sign of greater success for the organization.
References
Alliance Behavioral Healthcare. (n.d.). Cultural Competency
Plan. Retrieved from https://www.alliancebhc.org/wp-
content/uploads/Cultural-Competency-Plan.pdf
Betancourt, J. R., Green, A. R., Carrillo, J. E., & Owusu
Ananeh-Firempong, I. I. (2016). Defining cultural competence:
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815076.pdf
Carter, E. (2017). Workforce Diversity -- A Journey Through
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