Abstract:
Recent changes in the ethnic composition of the population of the United States pose great challenges for healthcare institutions and healthcare providers. In recent years, policy statements on nursing education indicated that nursing educators recognized the need to increase the cultural caring of the nursing workforce (Swanson, 2012). Salimbene (2014) discussed the importance of considering clients’ culture as an integral part of assessing their healthcare needs and planning culturally appropriate nursing care to meet those needs. Currently, there is a paucity of information regarding patients’ perceptions of culturally competent care. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify culturally sensitive caring behaviors of professional nurses from the perspective of Hispanic American maternity patients two to four weeks post-discharge in a WIC program in rural Georgia. Utilization of a phenomenological research design included interviews with 15 Hispanic American women. Data analysis was conducted using phenomenological analysis methods with the aid of the software program Nvivo 11. Themes that were identified were: Better Future, Better Medical Care, Treatment of Patients, Customs and Practices, and Meaning of Care. This information may aid in creating a culturally competent maternity care curriculum.
