What is Culture and Cultural Knowledge?
Culture is a set of shared traditions, beliefs, customs, values, folklore and institutions from a group of people that are transmitted intergenerationally (Leininger). Culture is dynamic and it is important to nurses to understand because they will be engaged with clients in the clinical and community settings that come from different cultural backgrounds. Cultural knowledge can be obtained through research, inquiry, and local knowledge. A nurses response to working with diverse groups of people is vital to establishing trust, respect, and provisions of health services that are sensitive to the needs of the individual, family, and community. Nurses who lack cultural knowledge and understanding of the groups they are in contact with may lead to poor or inadequate health services.