Cultural Competence 101: How to Become a More Culturally Competent Health Professional

Health professionals looking to broaden their cultural competence and gain skills for their line of work can benefit from “Cultural Competence 101: The Health Perspective,” a course taught by Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health’s (JPHCOPH) Associate Professor Stacy Smallwood, Ph.D., via Zoom on March 26 from 9 to 11 a.m.

Smallwood works passionately to bridge connections of cultural and social differences. This course is designed as a primer for developing approaches to building cultural competence.

“Cultural competence is not a destination, it is a journey,” said Smallwood. “It is a constant commitment to learning about new cultures and new communities. It is the ability to develop cultural humility, to understand that my culture is not the only culture that exists and learn about others and how to prioritize those when interacting with people with different social identities and marginalized communities.”

The course is appropriate for anyone working in any area of the health professions. The goal is to help sensitize professionals to the importance of cultural differences and offer skills that can be put into practice at work.

“Cultural competence doesn’t just apply to engaging with clients or patients,” added Smallwood. “These principles hold true in the workplace as well because we have a workforce that is composed of diverse populations, and we need to be able to communicate effectively with our coworkers.”

The course is free to all members of the Georgia CAH Community of Practice, as part of the FLEX Operational and Financial Improvement Grant. Limited seats are available so please register by March 22!