Page 84 - Nutrition Counseling and Education Skills: A Guide for Professionals

Source: US Department of Agriculture.

The Campinha-Bacote model is a five-part framework for cultural competence in healthcare. It includes
cultural awareness, cultural knowledge, cultural skill, cultural desire, and cultural encounter. In awareness,
professionals think about their own beliefs and values. Cultural knowledge examines what cultural knowledge
is needed by the professional. Cultural skill focuses on collecting cultural information from clients during
assessments and interventions. Cultural desire is the desire of counselors to include cross-cultural care in the
encounter and seek greater cultural competence. Finally, cultural encounter, which consists of the healthcare
professionals’ experiences with the client, includes interactions, motivation, and acceptance that advance the
understanding of the culture. Verbal and nonverbal skills such as listening, observing, discussion, and
nonjudgmental questions will enhance the cultural encounter.22

The Hand model of cultural sensitivity was developed by a nursing teacher in New Zealand where health
professionals work with the Maori indigenous population. The thumb represents “awareness,” with the other
four fingers representing “connection, communication, negotiation, and advocacy.” All fingers are connected
to the palm, which represents the clasping and shaking of hands promoting shared meaning of health.23
Nutrition counselors can experiment with different models to determine which approaches work for particular
clients. Each model has the underlying premise of communication and respect.

Cultural Competence in Counseling

Frequently, nutrition and dietetics professionals communicate with diverse clients and population groups. It is
important to be culturally competent, but one must be sure to work closely with the client and individualize
the entire counseling experience. Numerous questions need to be asked and answered. One must never forget
that the client is first and foremost an individual and not just a culture.

Cultural Assessment

To ensure that the diets of immigrants and minority groups are healthy, nutrition and dietetics professionals
should begin with a cultural assessment including the degree of acculturation to American eating practices.
This entails questions about traditional foods, the relationship of food to health, foods made or purchased,
recipes, food preparation, and family and food interactions.24–26

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