The Giger & Davidhizar Transcultural Assessment Model

This model developed in the year 1988 focuses on helping nurses to provide efficient and equal care among all patients regardless of the diversity in the culture of both the patients and the healthcare providers (Giger & Davidzhar 2002, p. 186). To fulfill this role, the model comprises six aspects namely; communication, space, social organization, biological variations, environmental control and time. The six components of the model help nurses to recognize and appreciate the diversity in beliefs, customs, and practices among the patient and ensure that this diversity does not limit the quality and outcomes of healthcare but instead it enhances the health care services and patient satisfaction (Giger & Davidzhar 2002, p. 187). Each patient is perceived as a unique individual according to this model, and only the six components of the model are used to analyze the patient and determine the medical attention and care that the specific individual requires (Karaburak et al. 2014, p. 16). The model’s uniqueness lies in the fact that unlike other models which assume that individuals in the same culture share common beliefs, practices, and heritage, Giger and Davidzhar take each as a unique entity regardless of their cultural backgrounds (Karaburak et al. 2014, p. 16). It is through this model that nurses can assess the role that culture plays in sickness and illness hence using the information both professionally and academically to develop culturally competent health care plans. Due to the individualistic considerations in this model, it is most appropriate target population is ethnocultural groups since such individuals may have similar cultures but they have only adapted to it since they come from different backgrounds hence needing individual treatment to understand their behaviors and beliefs about health and illnesses. This model, therefore, caters for all health conditions in ethnoculturally diverse populations respecting the perception of each regarding the six components like time and space to ensure that the quality of health outcomes fulfills both healthcare providers and the patients.

Reasons for selecting this model

  • This model treats each specifically without assuming that people from the same culture have similar beliefs hence similar health causes and outcomes (). Dealing with patients in urban settings is challenging regarding applying cultural congruence since all the patients have varying ethnic origins, but they adapt to the cultures of where they reside exemplified by the use of personal cars for convenience, consumption of processed foods and minimal physical exercise engagements due to limited time. However, this is just an adaptation to suit their survival in the environment, but some come from cultures where processed food is deemed unhealthy and personal cars are great luxuries and these forces individuals to walk to work bringing in an aspect of physical fitness. This model, therefore, will help in understanding what each considers as space regarding intimacy, private or public relations which are not uniform among all members of a specific culture, time regarding past, future, and current. Since such considerations determine how a patient responds to medical advice among all the other six components that analyze individual patients.
  • The model can be used for developing health programs that integrate cultural diversity without judging all patients depending on their cultures, and this will act as a guide for practicing and studying nurses.
  • The only enhancement of health outcomes is the most effective compared to public focus because transcultural communication may be limited if done in a whole community set up. It is unlike when it is between individuals meaning this model has greater chances of improving quality of healthcare hence bringing fulfillment to both the nurses and patients (Giger & Davidzhar 2002, p. 187).

Strengths and limitations of the model

  • The incorporation of environmental control and genetic variations in the components of the model ensures that the uncontrollable cultural aspects relating to health and disease are considered since a disease can be hereditary for a family et the whole community sharing a culture do not have the disease meaning the individual’s biological variations is used in composing healthcare interventions (Fatma 2013, p. 7).
  • Focusing on nurses first to ensure that they understand the specific cultural orientation of each patient helps the nurses appreciate these cultures enhancing the levels of competence in health care services.
  • The model also helps nurses to understand their own cultural diversity and ensure it only impacts their services to patients positively hence the model is two-sided revealing both the nurse’s and patient’s cultural orientation and this helps in offering culturally competent care.
  • The model focuses on training healthcare professionals on offering sensitive social care, but they leave out the aspect of cultural awareness which could act as a limitation to the application of the model in a non-ethnoculturally diverse population (Sagar 2012, p. 15).
  • The six components that the model is based cover a full scope and while this could be an advantage for extensive application of health care services, it is complicated and may lead to medical errors or confusion among the practicing nurses as depicted by Sagar (2011, p. 16).
  • The model limits the community outcomes related to cultural aspects, yet in some cases, they are significant contributors to illnesses and poor health.

Summary

It is clear that this model has an array of advantages over other models due to its extensive scope of target populations since most models only target culturally diverse patients but the Giger and Davidzhgar model includes the ethnoculturally diverse patients. Treating each separately and understanding their cultural background has enhanced competence in health care services as elaborated by Giger and Davidzhar (2002, p. 187). Due to the extensive analysis of patients regarding cultural aspects in this model, it has formed a suitable platform for use in the development of culturally sensitive and congruent medical plans among the culturally diverse populations and students in nursing can also use the model to understand the uniqueness of each patient even within their cultural orientation. The current healthcare set up involves different communities of individuals who seem to be in the same culture due to the adaptations that have taken place to enhance survival tactics. These individuals, however, have different cultural and ethnic backgrounds hence beliefs, practices and customs exemplified by individuals who come from communities. Many people trust in herbal medicine, but they comply with hospital consultancy due to lacking an alternative. Thus, this may fail to be recognized if a competent transcultural model like the Giger and Davidgzar model is not applied. This model is therefore appropriate because the health sector is overburdened with lifestyle conditions currently exemplified by diabetes, obesity, stroke, and hypertension yet lifestyle health conditions cannot be separated with cultural orientations since culture determines behavior and lifestyle (Sagar 2011, p. 19). By using this model to understand individual behaviors and perceptions, it will be possible to manage and prevent the numerous and severe cases of chronic lifestyle health conditions hence lowering the rates of deaths, readmissions, and medical costs. This model should be introduced in school curriculums to ensure that every nurse practitioner understands the importance of caring for a patient individually and understanding their cultural concerns to ensure better healthcare outcomes.

References

Fatma, T. (2013). Giger and Davidhizar’s transcultural assessment model: a case study in Turkey. Health Science Journal7(3).

Giger, J. N., & Davidhizar, R. (2002). The Giger and Davidhizar transcultural assessment model. Journal of Transcultural Nursing13(3). Pp. 185-188.

Karaburak, S. S., Tas, F., & Basbakkal, Z. (2014). Giger and Davidhizar’s Transcultural Assessment Model. Pp. 1-34

Sagar, P. L. (2011). Transcultural nursing theory and models: application in nursing education, practice, and administration. Springer Publishing Company. Pp. 1-59

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

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"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]
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