An Introduction to Community and Primary Health Care

Cultural competence and cultural safety support health professionals to recognise each individual as unique in order to promote optimal health outcomes (Hoare, 2019). This allows for the acknowledgement of diversity that exists within and between individuals and groups in health care (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2018; Nursing Council of New Zealand, 2011). In practice, this represents the broader understanding of culture in health care, and encompasses the dynamic influences of culture on attitudes, values and beliefs (Cox & Taua, 2017; Stein-Parbury, 2018). Health professionals have a responsibility to provide culturally competent and safe care based upon mutual respect for all people. A key consideration when working with individuals is to seek an authentic understanding of their cultural context. This may include family, significant others or a notable absence of kinship (Ramsden, 2002; Wepa, 2015). In this chapter, the discussion focuses on understanding culture, cultural diversity and the need for health professionals to integrate cultural competence into everyday care to support culturally safe practice.