Culturally sound nursing

    For the final week, we concluded our final project and we are now finishing up each of our personal entries. I found it very informative to focus on a specific culture and use a variety of sources to see the variety of aspects of Western Samoan culture.      This class has aided me to reflect upon my current cultural understanding and has inspired me to do more research into aspects of international traditions. Each patient in my future care will have their own specific past and future, I am therefore responsible to do my part to educate myself on their preferences for care.

      Polynesian culture is yet another wide-reaching description for many varieties of people. I chose to focus on their religious side, more specifically on the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, which makes up 60% of certain Polynesian populations. I found how deeply integrated moral values are in their culture and the synchronicity of their religion and cultural ideals.     Other students highlighted variations between differing Polynesian cultures. Many often forget that Hawaiin culture is a part of this family and has somewhat influenced its integration into the United States. Each culture has its own subculture, we are therefore responsible to remain aware of this and not based cultural understandings on specific portions of nationality, race, or groups.

      The topic of Asian culture does not well define a specific group of people. For example, Japanese Culture and Thai culture are quite different despite their proximity. This allowed for a larger view of cultural research. I focused on the agricultural aspect of East Asian culture and the impact of rice. Rice farming is an intensely demanding agricultural tradition that has shaped the culture of this population. Another student focused her insights on the country of Laos, perhaps a lesser-known group in comparison to the larger Asian countries.      Each country within a continent has its own defined culture. From city to city or state to state, one can learn of the communal practices that are often celebrated by a people. 

     In both religion, heritage, culture, and nationality characteristics, the Jewish culture is rich with history and beauty of tradition. In my personal research, I was able to learn more about Yiddish culture and language. As a part of Jewish culture, the Yiddish language has grown and fallen throughout history. Despite a fall in its presence due to the tragedy of the Holocaust, Yiddish speaking groups have grown and arisen in recent decades, especially resonating with Millenials and Gen-Xers. Other students revealed more tragic facts regarding the Holocaust and highlighted the significance of a Kosher diet.      The Jewish culture retains many ancient traditions from a vast history of culture and beliefs tied to the Law of Moses. Through increased educational pursuits, I have begun to grasp some of their cultural treasures.