DFW Oncology Navigators
Stay Connected

Cultural Diversity

Posted about 1 year ago in Awareness

October is Global Diversity Month. Cultural diversity is important in our organizations, as colleagues, and for our patients. 

What is Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Belonging and Cultural Competence?

  • Diversity: This is when people from all different backgrounds come together. It includes people of different races, genders, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, visible and invisible disabilities, class, or status.*
  • Equity: The understanding that providing equal treatment or resources doesn’t necessarily deliver equally matching results is the foundation of equity. While many people share the same goals and dreams, the path isn’t always the same, and one might experience more hardship and obstacles than another.*
  • Inclusion: Celebrating diversity requires thoughtful inclusion. Everyone must be recognized and appreciated for their talents, be provided with opportunities to get involved, and have their perspectives valued and heard.*
  • Belonging: A sense of belonging ties diversity, equity, and inclusion together. Each group member is respected, valued, and cherished while being their authentic selves. Belonging is a feeling of a shared community.*
  • Cultural Competence: The goal of culturally competent health care services is to provide the highest quality of care to every patient, regardless of race, ethnicity, cultural background, English proficiency or literacy. 

          * retrieved from https://chally.com/blog/inclusion-quotes/

Benefits of Being Culturally Diverse and Competent:

  1. Increased patient understanding, compliance and engagement in their healthcare journey
  2. Decreased disparities and barriers to care which leads to improved patient outcomes
  3. Increased patient safety
  4. Improved customer service leading to increased patient satisfaction
  5. Increased comfortability and trust leading to higher retention of patients and employees
  6. Increased employee satisfaction and sense of community and belonging

What You Can Do:

  1. Using interpreter services to communicate to patients in their preferred language. 
  2. Give patient materials in the patient's preferred language when possible.
  3. Learn about the cultural norms for your patient population and colleagues.
  4. Respect the differences and try to honor them. 
  5. Have a database of multicultural resources to access.

- NIH

Quotable Quotes:

We become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams. Jimmy Carter

Diversity is having a seat at the table, inclusion is having a voice, and belonging is having that voice be heard. When we feel belonging, we feel valued not for fitting in, but for everything that makes us unique.                                                        -  Liz Fosslien

Diversity doesn't look like anyone. It looks like everyone. –Karen Draper

We may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, but we all belong to one human race.                  --Kofi Annan (Ghanian Diplomat, 7th UN SecretaryGeneral, 2001 Nobel Peace Prize Winner; b. 1938)

Exclusion is derived from fear, ignorance, and power, whilst inclusion is derived from love, compassion, and respect.             –Michelle Emson

Diversity is a fact, but inclusion is a choice we make every day. As leaders, we have to put out the message that we embrace and not just tolerate diversity. –Nellie Borrero

It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.                 –Audre Lorde 

Build bridges, not walls." –Suzy Kassem

Resources: