Do Cultural Differences Matter In How Osteoarthritis Will Affect Me?
Cultural differences do matter and research demonstrates it can make a big impact in a patient understnding their disease and it can affect the treatment outcome
Ethnomedicine: is the field of study that explores the meanings that members of different cultures give to illnesses that afflict them and how these perceptions affect behavior and treatment decisions with regard to these illnesses. The foundation of such studies has been around for many years and the theories upon which ethnomedical studies have been conducted are not new. However, the perceptions of people, the collective thoughts of changing cultures, and advancements in science, medicine, and communication channels have changed; they are dynamic features in the realm of ethnomedicine. Ethnomedical studies of new and old illnesses are therefore warranted in order for physicians to effectively communicate with the patients of today and their perceptions of illness. Osteoarthritis is one such illness that, because of its great prevalence and the resultant large number of people that are impacted, should be further studied in order to define the perceptions that patients with Osteoarthritis have about the disease.
Physicians and other health care professionals who are in the position of caring for patients with OA may not be aware of their patients’ understanding of the disease process, treatment options, and prognosis for the disease. It has been suggested that a greater degree of congruity between the models of illness recognized by a health care professional and a patient may result in enhanced communication between the two. Research has revealed that using a patient’s previous knowledge (or understanding) of his or her disease could be advantageous in enhancing the patient’s level of understanding of his or her disease. If patient education by health care professionals is centered on the patient’s explanatory model of illness, doctors and other health care providers may be more successful in improving their patients’ quality of life.
A number of models of illness exist but tend to be too focused on the physician’s knowledge and not the patients. For example, medical models of illness consist of an objective and a subjective component, both based upon verified scientific and medical facts, recognized by the medical community. They are a poor fit for defining a patients’ understanding of his or her illness unless that patient’s perception of his or her illness is equivalent to the established medical model of that illness, which doctors and healthcare providers reference in the diagnosis and treatment of their patients. Most patients do not view their illnesses in a way that is identical to the established medical models of illness. In contrast to the medical models of illness, research has shown that a patients understanding, knowledge and awareness of their disease is heavily influenced by a patient’s experiences, friends, family, and notably individual. Being aware of where the patients gets their information and their understanding of their disease will enable doctors to know a patient’s understanding of his or her illness, which can then be used to enhance communication between the doctor and patients to improve the patient’s health. A patient’s understanding of his or her disease is an important piece of information that a doctor can utilize in order to achieve the best therapeutic outcome for a patient.
A patient’s model of illness, or understanding of illness, is often quite different from the medical model held by health care providers. The question arises as to the affect that this may have on the actual interaction in the doctor-patient relationship and ultimately the outcome of treatment. Social psychologists have reported that people tend to form negative judgments of those persons with more dissimilar world views. Conversely, having similar world views has been observed to solidify one’s own world view and to increase the success of the “cultural anxiety buffer”. The cultural anxiety buffer consists of two parts: “1) a belief in the validity of a cultural perception of reality that gives meaning, value and religious accuracy and 2) the perception that one is upholding this reality”. The concept of a buffer is important in the case of patients who are struggling with illness, treatment, and communication in a doctor-patient relationship where backgrounds and levels of comprehension are dissimilar.
Physicians and other health care professionals who are in the position of caring for patients with Osteoarthritis may not be aware of their patients’ understanding of the disease process, treatment options, or outcomes. If health care providers were aware of their patients level of understanding of their disease, research has shown that physicians then encourage individual dialogue between the doctor and the patient, relevant to the patient’s understanding of illness, and importantly where it differs from the medical model. It has been noted that a greater degree of congruency between the health care professional and the patient may result in enhanced communication between the two. This may allow for a more thorough exploration by the health care provider, providing insight into the patient’s unique view of the disease, which may or may not be the same as the medical model of disease utilized by the doctor. Research has revealed that using a patient’s previous knowledge (or understanding) of his disease could be advantageous in enhancing his level of understanding of his disease. If teaching is structured within this unique view, doctors and other health care providers may be more successful at improving their patients’ quality of life.
Several other studies have examined the impact that communication between the physician and the patient, surrounding the causes and other factors of an illness, can have on the outcome of the treatment and the patient’s health. Clinicians too often make the mistake of assumption. They assume that the patient knows certain facts about his or her disease, which are common knowledge. Unfortunately, common knowledge changes depending on where one lives, the culture one is a part of, one’s socioeconomic class, and one’s level of education.
Patient Misunderstanding in Osteoarthritis
Patient Misunderstanding in Arthritis
Patient Misunderstanding in Other Diseases
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