Native American Health Care

Native American views on medicine and healing are largely based on the idea that all living things are interconnected and that the mind, body, and spirit of humans are not to be treated separately. In essence, spirituality is at the core of the human and must be treated along with any physical ailments that may arise. Traditional views are based on cultural practices, rituals, and myths from their own beliefs and customs within the culture. In contrast, Western medicine is highly mechanistic, focusing on the scientific model to heal and cure diseases in the physical body. These highly differing views on healing can result in humiliation, disrespect, and embarrassment to Native American people while in a healthcare environment. Therefore, it …show more content…
Cultural competence in health care describes “the ability to provide care to patients with diverse values, beliefs and behaviors, including tailoring health care delivery to meet patients’ social, cultural and linguistic needs” (becoming a cuCITATION). Health care organizations that maintain this cultural competency have improved health outcomes, increased respect and mutual understanding from patients, as well as an increased participation from the local community (SAME CITATION). In order to ensure culturally competent care to a Native American patient, a health care provider may incorporate strategies such as integrating culture-specific attitudes and values into health promotion tools, providing training to employees in an effort to increase cultural awareness and skills, coordinating with traditional healers, and including family and community members in health care decision making. Overall, patients who feel their healthcare providers respect their beliefs, customs, values, language, and traditions are more likely to communicate freely and honestly with their providers, which can, in turn, reduce disparities in health care and improve patient outcomes. Without open communication between patient and the healthcare provider, health disparities increase and lower levels of satisfaction are produced. Ultimately, data shows that disparities in healthcare and dissatisfaction are more pronounced among minorities such as Native Americans. According to the Indian Health Service, a federal agency that provides medical care to nearly 1.6 million American Indian and Alaska Native people, “the age-adjusted death rate for adults exceeds that of the general population by almost 40%, with deaths due to diabetes, chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, and accidents occurring at least three times the national rate, and deaths due to

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