Utilizing evidence-based guidelines to develop a language barriers simulation.

BACKGROUND: The United States population is becoming increasingly diverse. Despite this trend, diversity in the nursing profession lags. In order to provide patient-centered care, students must learn the nuances of providing culturally competent care. There are many ways to assess the impact of culture on healthcare behaviors and norms, and can include, but are not limited to, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or religious preference. Clinical experiences offer inconsistent opportunities for students to interact with potentially diverse patients. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this project was to develop a simulation that built upon curricular objectives and evidence-based guidelines for healthcare providers communicating across language barriers. FINDINGS: Regulations and evidence-based guidelines describe how to provide quality patient-centered care to diverse groups of patients. These guidelines can be adapted at the clinician and systems level to facilitate culturally sensitive and linguistically appropriate services to patients. These guidelines were applied in an educational setting, and combined with best practices in simulation, to enhance undergraduate nursing students' experience in caring for diverse patients. CONCLUSION: The use of simulation can be optimized when based on evidence-based guidelines encountered in clinical care.

Parental perceptions of childhood overweight in the Mexican American population: an integrative review.

The prevalence of overweight in Mexican American children has been increasing at a steady rate over the past few years. People of Mexican origin make up the largest proportion of the Hispanic population, which has been reported by the U.S. Census Bureau to be the fastest growing ethnic group in the United States. The purpose of this integrative review was to examine and summarize the current research on parental perceptions of childhood overweight in the Mexican American population. Four main themes evolved as a result of the data analysis: parental perception of overweight, parental practices, household food security status, and acculturation. School nurses are in a position to influence children in improving their nutritional status and increasing their physical activity. Understanding cultural values and beliefs regarding health status and overweight of Mexican American families should be a priority for school nurses. Identifying food-related parenting styles and the concept of acculturation should also be considered prior to incorporating relevant interventions in the school setting.