Table of Contents
Introduction
Theoretical Background
Importance of Cultural Diversity in Healthcare
Impacts of Cultural Diversity in Healthcare
Challenges and Issues faced by Culturally Diversified Workplace in Healthcare
Management of Cultural Diversity in Healthcare
Reflective Analysis
Method
Meaningful Situations
Personal Reflections
Analysis and Discussion
Analysis
Discussion
Conclusion
References
Diversity is one of the most integral and important concepts in the realm of modern globalised business. For any globalised organisation in the world, one of the key major aspects that they have to focus on is the concept of inclusion which correlates to diversity. Due to globalisation, individuals of diversified groups of people in terms of ethnic groups, race, and culture have been able to gather and work together in the organisations using their own thinking methods, ideas, approaches, and so on in their tasks (Ward, 2019). This has helped the organisations to not only become multicultural, but also develop their core values, acknowledgement and respect for other ethnic groups, productivity and efficiency within the workforce, innovation of the company, and so on.
The Australian Healthcare Industry is one of the best healthcare systems in the world that provides effective healthcare related treatments and services to the patients. However, due to the recent global pandemic of COVID-19 has affected the general system of the Australian Healthcare where many workers had to leave due to the pandemic while the operations of the industry had to be increased to tackle the challenges and issues caused by COVID-19 (Willis& Lewis, 2020). The Healthcare of Australia accounts for over 13.7% of the total workforce in the country and consists of diversified employees and patients. This is due to the fact that the country itself is diversified in their population with people of various other cultures and religions living and working in there.
Due to the diversified workforce of Australian Healthcare Industry, the following research study presents the question that needs to be addressed which ishow a culturally diversified workforce is managed in the context of the Australian Healthcare Industry. The study focuses on the cross-cultural diversity within the Australian Healthcare Industry and evaluates the management practices that are used to manage the workforce in the industry. The following study would provide a theoretical background using the existing literature on the subject matter. The importance and impacts of cultural diversity in healthcare industry would be critically assessed while the challenges and issues faced by culturally diversified workplace in healthcareindustry and the management of such would be evaluated in a logical manner. The study would also provide a reflective analysis as well as analysis and discussion on the subject matter using information obtained from theoretical background.
From the research works of Maldonado & Licari (2019), it has been found that cultural diversity has immense importance in the context of the healthcare industry. Cultural diversity in the workforce allows the workforce to not only become knowledgeable about each other’s cultures, but also gain a new perspective about each other and their thinking process. This allows the workforce to promote cooperation between each other as well as develop innovative and creative ways to solve problems, approach tasks, and so on which not only makes them highly productive and efficient, but it also helps the healthcare industry to achieve their goals and objectives successfully.
From the research works of Russell et al., (2017), it has been found that cultural diversity is significant in the Australian Healthcare industry.The country of Australia itself is diversified in their population with people of various other cultures and religions living and working in there. As such, the healthcare industry is often visited by patients and clients who belong to different culture and as such, they have their own languages, ways of communication and interaction, and so on. As a result of this, communication with the patients and clients in an effective manner becomes difficult for the industry with their regular staff. However, the presence of a culturally diversified workforce would allow the healthcare industry to successfully interact as well as communicate with the patients and clients and understand their needs that can be catered effectively.
As pointed out by Henderson et al., (2018), the presence of a culturally diversified workforce within the Australian Healthcare industry is highly effective in bolstering the globalisation process of the industry. Moreover, it is also helpful for developing a harmonic diversified community which tends to be peaceful and cooperative with each other and build a better society.
While culturally diversified workforce within the Australian healthcare industry has high significance, there are both positive and negative impacts of having cultural diversity in the healthcare. From the research works of Crawford et al., (2017), it has been found that the major positive impact of the culturally diversified workforce within the Australian healthcare industry is that it helps to create a positive image and reputation for the industry. Due to the presence of a culturally diversified workforce, the stigmas and prejudices regarding racial and cultural stereotypes are removed causing the industry to educate the public about the truth thereby earning their respect which helps to develop their reputation that allows them to gain success with the customers.
As pointed out byAbrishami (2018), another positive impact of having cultural diversity in the healthcare is employees who come from different culture have their own method of thinking and as such, this can be used to analyse and evaluate all the matters from a variety of perspectives. This allows the healthcare industry to innovate new methods of treatment and healthcare services as well as solve problems and issues faced by the company which benefits them. However, while there are positive impacts of cultural diversity in the healthcare, there are also negative impacts.
As opined by Jongen et al., (2018), one of the biggest negative impacts of having cultural diversity in the healthcare is miscommunication or communication barriers. Culturally diversified employees come from different cultures and as such, they have their own languages, ways of communication and interaction, and so on. As a result of this, employees are often unable to interact and communicate with each other due to the differences in their languages, ways of communication and interaction. This renders them unable to convey their feelings, thoughts, ideas, and creates misunderstandings and miscommunications which not only affects their coordination, but also creates issues for them that affects the industry as a whole.
From the research works of Jongen et al., (2018),it has been found that thenegative impact of having cultural diversity in the healthcare isthat it leads to conflicts. Oftenemployees who come from different culture have their own method of thinking and as such, their opinions differ from the others. However, a clash of opinions often creates a scenario where both or multiple individuals believe that their opinion is correct and that the other party is unwilling to accept it which leads to the creation of conflicts and disturbances in the industry which can affect the healthcare operations.
From the research works of Pung et al., (2017), it has been found that there are several challenges faced by a culturally diversified workplace within the healthcare industry of Australia. The biggest challenge faced is the differences in culture and language. Different cultures have their own languages, communication and interaction methods, behaviour, and so on. As a result of such, the employees are often unable to interact and communicate with each other due to the differences in their languages, ways of communication and interaction. This makes them unable to convey their feelings, thoughts, ideas, and therefore, creates misunderstandings which not only affects the workforce, but also creates issues for them that affects the industry as a whole.
As opined byRhee et al., (2019),another challenge faced by a culturally diversified workplace within the healthcare industry of Australia is racism and prejudices. Often uneducated and ill-informed individuals have pre-conceived notions and stereotypicalviews towards other culturally different beings. As a result of such pre-conceived notions, the employees often face racist remarks and comments pertaining to ethnic stereotypes from others which creates conflicts and issues that affects the workforce as well as the business of the healthcare industry itself.
From the research works ofWilliams et al., (2016), it has been found that another challenge faced by a culturally diversified workplace within the healthcare industry of Australia is differences in beliefs. Individuals of different culture have their own beliefs pertaining to politics, spiritualism, religion, cultural practices, and so on.This can lead to arguments and conflicts between the individuals of different cultures creating heavy issues for the healthcare industry as well as the workforce.
While there are issues and challenges faced by a culturally diversified workplace within the Australian Healthcare Industry, however, there are methods and ways using which, these can be successfully managed.From the research works ofBlumberga&Safonova (2016), it has been found thatteam building is a major way of successfully managing a culturally diversified workplace within the Healthcare Industry. Team building allows the individuals belonging to different cultures to come together and cooperate with each other in order to work. As a result of team-building, the employees are able to interact with each other and learn about them that leads to the loss of the pre-conceived notions and stereotypical views towards each other’s cultures.
As opined byQuintana (2018), it has been found that another major way of successfully managing a culturally diversified workplace is the process of inclusions. The management makes the rule of inclusion where individuals are able to engage with each other and learn about their cultural backgrounds and other aspects like communication and interaction processes, languages, beliefs, and so on. This allows the individuals to not only get their knowledge of other cultures enriched, but it also makes them view each other’s beliefs from their perspectives which leads to mitigation of conflicts and arguments.
From the research works ofMarcelin et al., (2019), another major way of successfully managing a culturally diversified workplace is the establishment of one single method of communication. English is a universally accepted language used by nearly all countries globally. As such, the use of English language as a medium of communication can allow the employees to successfully interact and communicate with each other thereby causing little to no barriers to communication as well as miscommunications.
Research Question: How is a culturally diverse workforce managed in the context of the Australian Healthcare Industry?
The method used in the research is secondary. It is desk research that involves the utilization of the existing dataset. The existing dataset is collated and summarized for increasing the overall effectivity in the total procedure of research. The secondary research method involves the materials of research published in the reports and are of similar documentation(Guillaume et al., 2017). The documents are available through public libraries and obtained data, websites, government, and non-government agencies, etc. The purpose of the research is retrieved from the obtained datasets.
The data acquired are already filled through various processes of surveying. It is more effective in terms of cost-saving and can employ a secondary party for collecting the data on the researcher’s behalf.
The method of research entirely emphasizes the three situations. It focuses on the cultural management of the diversified workforce, diversities in the workforce, and ethnicity, linguistics, and religious diversities in the Australian healthcare industry(Ng & Sears, 2018).
Cultural diversities in the workplace and management of culture in the diversified workforce are implied through essential competencies of the Australian healthcare industry's culture. It involves value, traditions, norms, and so on, which eventually affects the way of perception of the group members who are typically attracted to the thinking, interacting, behaving, and making judgments (Shaari et al., 2020).
The diversified workplace is a situation where diversity is prioritized and is inclusive of all the investments in terms of investing the resources and other initiatives. It also involves all the intangible and tangible benefits(Ozgen et al., 2017). It is mainly concerned with external and internal perspectives.
Workplace diversity refers to a particular organization employed intentionally within a compromised workforce involving all individuals with different races, religions, genders, ages, sexual orientations, ethnicity, education, and other attributes.
I consider the workplace diversities as a different dimension within a particular work atmosphere. It also involves all the intangible and tangible benefits. It involves value, traditions, norms, and so on, which eventually affects the way of perception of the group members who are typically attracted to the thinking, interacting, behaving, and making judgments.
In my view, the diversities within the workplace lead to innovation. It makes sense in terms of the correlation. Embracing diversity involves a group of people in terms of a homogeneous aspect of the Australian healthcare industry. It involves the patterns of life in terms of thought processing and experiencing the skills of problem-solving.
I think that ethnicity, linguistics, and religious diversities within the workplace emphasizes on the increase of profits. It is mainly concerned with the enhancement of performances.
The research has been discussed based on the workforce culture of global organizations. Diversity has been seen on workforce culture specially in the healthcare industry. The healthcare industry of Australia is a booming industry. The journals have been taken based on the medical industry and the diversified workforce culture. The research has implemented methods through the authentic sources to address the issues of the diversified workforce culture.
The above-written research study focuses on the cross-cultural diversity within the Australian Healthcare Industry and evaluates the management practices that are used to manage the workforce in the industry. From the study, it has been found that there are various importance and impacts of cultural diversity in healthcare industry as well as several challenges and issues faced by them. However, there are some management methods which are practiced to successfully manage the cultural diversity in healthcare industry and mitigate the issues and problems. Therefore, it can be concluded that while there are cultural issues, the Australian healthcare industry can successfully mitigate it.
References
Abrishami, D. (2018). The need for cultural competency in health care. Radiologic technology, 89(5), 441-448.
Blumberga, S., &Safonova, A. (2016, May). Stress, coping, adaptation and cultural diversity of healthcare personnel. In Proceedings of the International Scientific Conference. Volume I (Vol. 299, p. 307).
Crawford, T., Candlin, S., & Roger, P. (2017). New perspectives on understanding cultural diversity in nurse–patient communication. Collegian, 24(1), 63-69.
Henderson, S., Horne, M., Hills, R., & Kendall, E. (2018). Cultural competence in healthcare in the community: A concept analysis. Health & Social Care in the Community, 26(4), 590-603.
Jongen, C., McCalman, J., & Bainbridge, R. (2018). Health workforce cultural competency interventions: a systematic scoping review. BMC health services research, 18(1), 232.
Maldonado, L., & Licari, T. (2019). Cultural Diversity in Healthcare [Radiologic Technology].
Marcelin, J. R., Siraj, D. S., Victor, R., Kotadia, S., & Maldonado, Y. A. (2019). The impact of unconscious bias in healthcare: how to recognize and mitigate it. The Journal of infectious diseases, 220(Supplement_2), S62-S73.
Pung, L. X., & Goh, Y. S. (2017). Challenges faced by international nurses when migrating: an integrative literature review. International Nursing Review, 64(1), 146-165.
Quintana, K. A. (2018). Cultural Diversity and Inclusion in Health Care. Leading and Managing in Nursing-E-Book, 62.
Rhee, T. G., Marottoli, R. A., Van Ness, P. H., & Levy, B. R. (2019). Impact of perceived racism on healthcare access among older minority adults. American journal of preventive medicine, 56(4), 580-585.
Russell, C. T. S., Augustin, F., & Jones, P. (2017). Perspectives on the Importance of Integrating Diversity into the Healthcare Administration Curriculum: The Role of Cultural Humility. The Journal of Health Administration Education, 34(3), 371.
Ward, J. (2019). Essential Skills for Leadership Development in a Multicultural Organization. Muma Business Review, 3, 027-028.
Williams, J. S., Walker, R. J., &Egede, L. E. (2016). Achieving equity in an evolving healthcare system: opportunities and challenges. The American journal of the medical sciences, 351(1), 33-43.
Willis, K., & Lewis, S. (2020). Chapter Eleven: The Imperative of Choice in Australian Healthcare. In Navigating Private and Public Healthcare (pp. 227-248). Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore.
Bibliography
Abrishami, D. (2018). The need for cultural competency in health care. Radiologic technology, 89(5), 441-448.
Blumberga, S., & Safonova, A. (2016). Stress, coping, adaptation and cultural diversity of healthcare personnel. Proceedings of the International Scientific Conference. Volume I, 299, p. 307.
Crawford, T., Candlin, S., & Roger, P. (2017). New perspectives on understanding cultural diversity in nurse–patient communication. Collegian, 24(1), 63-69.
Guillaume, Y., Dawson, J., Otaye‐Ebede, L., Woods, S., & West, M. (2017). Harnessing demographic differences in organizations: What moderates the effects of workplace diversity? Journal of Organizational Behavior, 38(2), 276-303.
Henderson, S., Horne, M., Hills, R., & Kendall, E. (2018). Cultural competence in healthcare in the community: A concept analysis. Health & Social Care in the Community, 26(4), 590-603.
Jongen, C., McCalman, J., & Bainbridge, R. (2018). Health workforce cultural competency interventions: a systematic scoping review. BMC health services research, 18(1), 232.
Maldonado, L., & Licari, T. (2019). Cultural Diversity in Healthcare [Radiologic Technology].
Marcelin, J., Siraj, D., Victor, R., Kotadia, S., & Maldonado, Y. (2019). The impact of unconscious bias in healthcare: how to recognize and mitigate it. The Journal of infectious diseases, 220(Supplement_2), S62-S73.
Ng, E., & Sears, G. (2018). Walking the talk on diversity: CEO beliefs, moral values, and the implementation of workplace diversity practices. Journal of Business Ethics, 1-14.
Ozgen, C., Nijkamp, P., & Poot, J. (2017). The elusive effects of workplace diversity on innovation. Papers in Regional Science, 96, S29-S49.
Pung, L.‐X., & Goh, Y.‐S. (2017). Challenges faced by international nurses when migrating: an integrative literature review. International Nursing Review, 64(1), 146-165.
Quintana, K. (2018). Cultural Diversity and Inclusion in Health Care. Leading and Managing in Nursing-E-Book, 62.
Rhee, T., Marottoli, R., Van Ness, P., & Levy, B. (2019). Impact of perceived racism on healthcare access among older minority adults. American journal of preventive medicine, 56(4), 580-585.
Russell, C., Augustin, F., & Jones, P. (2017). Perspectives on the Importance of Integrating Diversity into the Healthcare Administration Curriculum: The Role of Cultural Humility. The Journal of Health Administration Education, 34(3), 371.
Shaari, N., Subramaniam, G., & Hassan, R. (2020). WORKPLACE DIVERSITY IN MALAYSIA MULTICULTURAL SOCIETY: PROSPECTS AND CHALLENGES. International Journal of Business and Economy, 2(1), 10-19.
Williams, J., Walker, R., & Egede, L. (2016). Achieving equity in an evolving healthcare system: opportunities and challenges. The American journal of the medical sciences, 351(1), 33-43.
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