Cultural Challenge Analysis In Nursing

Cultural Challenge Analysis

1. Briefly describe a situation where you were faced with a cultural dilemma or challenge (it does NOT have to be from an experience you've had in your nursing program). Identify WHY it was a challenge (15 pts).

I grew up in nuclear family in a conservative neighborhood, my childhood was like a 1950’s American dream. During middle school, my parents announced a divorce then two weeks later my mother shared that she is a lesbian. At the time, I didn’t know about sexuality let alone wrapping my head around what a lesbian was. Once our community and classmates found out my family’s secret I was bullied which fostered negative feelings towards my mother and other gay people. The challenged stemmed from being harassed

A few ways this situation has impacted my nursing practice is to; acknowledge my own biases, learn more about my patient’s community, and understand that my first assumptions are often incorrect. Another tactic that I use in population-based nursing is to value communities that are not like me for they are humans and deserve equal care and respect. Moreover, there is far more to learn from people and situations that are unfamiliar and unlike the population that you identify with. Together, these specific learning realizations have formed how I communicate with

How did you resolve the situation? (If you did not resolve the situation, why not? What would you do instead?) (20 pts)

The combination of therapy and maturity resolved this situation. After coming to the realization that I didn’t do anything wrong, forgiving myself for being angry at my mothers and not accepting them immediately, and giving myself time; I began to move forward. My mothers and I resolved this situation through open and honest conversation, forgiveness and acceptance.

Learning from this life event has made all the pain worth bearing. Now, I am thankful for my mother being true to herself and introducing me to different lifestyles other than my own. I deeply believe that navigating through this has influenced my life and my nursing style. Through this cultural challenge, I formed coping mechanisms for when I feel uncomfortable or when I am in opposition, again this will benefit me when I am in moral distress and day-to-day nursing tasks.

4. In retrospect, how would you handle the challenge differently OR what did you learn from this experience? (20