Essay on Creating a Culture

Submitted By Eureka77
Words: 586
Pages: 3

Cultural and Ethnic Groups within My Service Area
Eureka S. Cummings, RN
Gulf Coast State College
Multicultural Nursing
October 1, 2014
Abstract

The CDC reports that 129.8 million visits are made to the Emergency Department in the US. 37.9 million Visits are related to injuries (www.cdc.gov). In the emergency room you meet patients from many different cultures and ethnic groups. As an emergency room nurse I aim to deliver culturally competent care to the patients that we serve in my community.
Cultural competence is a dynamic, fluid, continuous process whereby an individual, system, or health care agency finds meaningful and useful care- delivery strategies based on knowledge of the cultural heritage, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors of those to whom they render care (Giger, 6).
I currently practice as an Emergency room nurse at Bay Medical Sacred Heart, which has received its level II trauma designation. It is also known for heart and stroke excellence. Bay Medical serves Bay County and surrounding counties like; Franklin, Gulf, Calhoun, Washington, and Holmes counties. It is the only trauma center between Pensacola and Tallahassee in Northwest Florida. Bay Medical Emergency room provides care for life’s big and little emergencies for approximately 70,000 patients annually. According to the US Census Bureau for 2013, Florida inhabits 19,555,860 residents as of 2013. Of those residents 78.1% are White, 16.7% are Black, 0.5% are American Indian, 2.7% are Asian and only 0.1% are Native Hawaiian. The population of Bay County has a poverty level of 13.3 % with the national average being 14.9%. The surrounding areas however are very poverty stricken with Calhoun County leading at 24.8%, Franklin County 22.2%, and Gulf County at 18.8%. 6.3% of Bay County population speaks another language other than English, 87.4% graduated from high school that are over the age of 25, and 21.3% have a bachelor’s degree of that same age group. 15.9% of Bay County residents are 65 years and over which is a large percent with the whole state average is 18.7%.
Bay Medical has a large community that they serve. There is a large population of elderly patients in the area. When a patient is showing signs of a stroke or heart attack they will most likely come to Bay Medical because it is known for heart and stroke excellence. When a patient has a