Central Iowa AHEC Announces Summer Cultural Awareness Series

May 13th, 2010

The increasing population growth of racial and ethnic communities presents a challenge to the delivery of healthcare, not only in Iowa, but across the nation. It is important for providers to understand cultural competence to be able to close the disparity gap in healthcare. In order to educate providers on this important issue facing today's healthcare system, Central Iowa AHEC is kicking of its annual Summer Cultural Awareness Series. These continuing education workshops will address cultural, language, class and economic barriers to healthcare between health providers and patients, as well as ways to work more effectively with patients of cross-cultural and low-income populations.

The first class, titled "Cultural Competency and Health in a Changing Iowa," will be held in June and look at Iowa's rapidly changing demographics and its influence on health. "Working Effectively with Families from Low Socioeconomic Status Backgrounds" is scheduled for August and will discuss the demographic patterns of poverty within Iowa, class and the relationship of income to health and policies that can be implemented to serve patients of all economic backgrounds. Both classes will be held at Broadlawns Medical Center in Des Moines.

Share/Bookmark