Cultural Considerations for End-of-Life Discussions: A Literature Review
This literature review explores cultural considerations related to end-of-life care discussions.
May 2, 2019 · Article
1556755200
Overcoming Barriers to Care for Hepatitis B Virus Among SE Asians in King County: Literature Review
This literature review explores the burden of Hepatitis B Virus in Southeast Asian countries and immigrants in the United States, and explores the existing barriers to testing and treatment, as well as intervention and testing recommendations for providers.
February 7, 2019 · Article
1549497600
Cultural Implications of Brain Death – A Literature Review
This literature review explores cultural considerations related to end-of-life care discussions.
September 19, 2017 · Article
1505779200
Somali Refugee Mental Health Cultural Profile – Literature Update
In 2016, the Epidemiology and Research Literature Summary section of EthnoMed’s Somali Refugee Mental Health Cultural Profile was updated with new information based on a review of research articles published 2004-2015. These updates are presented here.
July 21, 2016 · Article
1469059200
Physical and Psychological Sequelae in Refugees Who Have Survived Torture: Literature Review
A review of the literature about ramifications of physical and psychological torture in adult refugees or asylum seekers.
January 1, 2014 · Article
1388534400
Responding to a Request: Gender-Exclusive Swims in a Somali Community
The article describes a creative intervention to improve physical activity among Somali immigrants in Seattle, Washington.
January 1, 2010 · PDF
1262304000
Somali Bantu Literature Review
A literature review that provides information on Somali Bantu history and culture.
May 1, 2008 · Article
1209600000
Delayed Bottle Weaning and Iron Deficiency in Southeast Asian Toddlers
This study was undertaken to determine if culturally influenced feeding practices are associated with iron deficiency in infants and toddlers from low-income families, including Southeast Asian families.
July 1, 1997 · Article
867715200
Cross-Cultural Medicine and Diverse Health Beliefs – Ethiopians Abroad
Article reprinted with permission from Western Journal of Medicine. By Richard M. Hodes, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. West J Med, January 1997.
January 1, 1997 · Article, PDF
852076800
Screening for Depression Among Newly Arrived Vietnamese Refugees in Primary Care Settings
Article reprinted with permission from Western Journal of Medicine. By Dedra Buchwald, MD et al. West J Med, October 1995; 163:341-345.
October 2, 1995 · Article, PDF
812592000
Understanding Cultural Difference in Caring for Dying Patients
This article suggests a way to assess cultural variation in end-of-life care, arguing that culture is only meaningful when interpreted in the context of a patient’s unique history, family constellation, and socioeconomic status.
September 5, 1995 · PDF
810259200
Mental Health and Illness in Vietnamese Refugees
Article reprinted with permission from Western Journal of Medicine by Steven J. Gold, PhD, Whittier, CA. West J Med, Sept. 1992; 157:290-294.
September 6, 1992 · Article
715737600
Medical Disclosure and Refugees – Telling Bad News to Ethiopian Patients
Article reprinted with permission from Western Journal of Medicine. By Yewoubdar Beyene, PhD, San Francisco, CA. West J Med, September 1992; 157:328-332.
September 1, 1992 · PDF
715305600
Ethical Dilemmas in a Cross Cultural Context – A Chinese Example
Article reprinted with permission from Western Journal of Medicine. By Jessica H. Muller, PhD and Brian Desmond, MD, September 1992.
September 1, 1992 · PDF
715305600
The Effect of Values and Culture on Life-Support Decisions
Withdrawing life support is always difficult. When patients and health professionals are from different ethnic backgrounds, value systems that form the basis for such decisions may conflict.
September 1, 1992 · PDF
715305600
Working with Refugee Survivors of Torture
Article reprinted with permission from Western Journal of Medicine. By Barbara Chester, PhD and Neal Holton, MPH. West J Med, September 1992; 157:301-304.
September 1, 1992 · Article, PDF
715305600
External Resources
- American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine
Publishes the most innovative research, highest quality reviews, clinical trials, guidelines, and statements in pulmonary, critical care, and sleep-related fields - Care of Adult Refugees with Chronic Conditions - Journal Article
Refugees share a common experience of displacement from their country of origin, migration, and resettlement in an unfamiliar country. More than 17 million people have fled their home countries due to war, generalized violence, and persecution. US primary care physicians must care for their immediate and long-term medical needs. Challenges include (1) language and cultural barriers, (2) high rates of mental health disorders, (3) higher prevalence of latent infections, and (4) different explanatory models for chronic diseases. This article discusses management strategies for common challenges that arise in the primary care of refugees. - Comorbid Mental and Physical Health and Health Access in Cambodian Refugees in the US
Little research has been conducted on the prevalence of physical health problems in Cambodian refugees and the relationship between their mental and physical health. We identified the relationship between mental and physical health problems and barriers to healthcare access in Cambodian refugee adults. - Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology
Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology® seeks to advance the psychological science of culture, ethnicity, and race through the publication of empirical research, as well as theoretical, conceptual, and integrative review articles that will stimulate further empirical research, on basic and applied psychological issues relevant to racial and ethnic groups that have been historically subordinated, underrepresented, or underserved. - Cultural Influences on Infant Feeding Practices
Link to 2009 journal article from Pediatrics in Review (Authors: Pak-Gorstein, Haq, Graham), used with permission. - Cultural practices affecting the skin of children : Current Opinion in Pediatrics
Cultural practices that present with dermatologic manifestations in the pediatric population are common. However, such skin manifestations are often poorly understood in western medicine and lesions are misdiagnosed, with child abuse being a common misdiagnosis. - Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry
An international and interdisciplinary forum for the publication of work in the fields of medical and psychiatric anthropology, cross-cultural psychiatry, and associated cross-societal and clinical epidemiological studies. - Diabetes in sub-Saharan Africa
This 2010 article by Jean Claude N Mbanya et al., in the journal The Lancet presents an overview of the effect of diabetes and the health-care challenges encountered in sub-Saharan Africa. (Restricted Access) - Discrimination and Mental Health Among Somali Refugee Adolescents: The Role of Acculturation and Gender - American Journal of Orthopsychiatry
This study examines the role of social identity (acculturation and gender) in moderating the association between discrimination and Somali adolescent refugees’ mental health. - Dreams Deferred — The Public Health Consequences of Rescinding DACA
November 2017 article from the New England Journal of Medicine about the public health consequences of rescinding DACA. - Effects of Traditional and Western Environments on Prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes in Pima Indians in Mexico and the U.S.
2006 Article by Leslie O. Schulz et al., in the American Diabetes Association’s Diabetes Care journal provides evidence that changes in lifestyle associated with Westernization play a major role in the global epidemic of type 2 diabetes. - Famine Exposure in the Young and the Risk of Type 2 Diabetes in Adulthood
2012 Article by Annet F.M. van Abeelen et al., in the American Diabetes Association journal Diabetes about the association between self-reported moderate and severe undernutrition during childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood and the risk of type 2 diabetes in adult life. - Health consequences of the US Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) immigration programme: a quasi-experimental study
In this study we aimed to examine the consequences of the US DACA programme on self-reported overall and mental health among undocumented immigrants of Hispanic origin (who represent the majority of DACA-eligible individuals). We used a quasi-experimental research strategy based on the timing of programme implementation, as well as eligibility rules, to estimate causal relationships. - High prevalence of chronic non-communicable conditions among adult refugees: Implications for practice and policy.
This 2012 study suggests that chronic NCDs are common among adult refugees in the US, including refugees at high risk for uninsurance. We propose that refugee health services accommodate screening and treatment for chronic NCDs and NCD risk factors, and that insurance outreach and enrollment programs target recently arrived refugees. - Hmong Studies Journal
The WWW Hmong Homepage is a volunteer effort since 1994 bringing together a collection the Internet-based resources related to Hmong news and current-events, issues, history, publications, and culture. The WWW Hmong Homepage serves as a gathering place for references to Internet resources and is aimed at anyone seeking more information about the Hmong people. The WWW Hmong Homepage is intended to provide not only basic background and historical information about Hmong people, but also extensive references to on-going research projects, current events, and issues pertaining to Hmong history, resettlement, and repatriation. - Long-term risk of tuberculosis among immigrants in Norway - International Journal of Epidemiology
This 2005 article reports a study that examined the long-term risk of TB among immigrants in Norway. - Making a Case for Sanctuary Hospitals - JAMA
Advocates that health care professionals support and advocate for health care facilities to be sanctuary places that protect the undocumented and vulnerable. - Please Ask Gently: Using Culturally Targeted Communication Strategies to Initiate End-of-Life Care Discussions With Older Chinese Americans
This qualitative (focused) ethnographic study explored communication strategies for HCPs to initiate EOL care discussions with older Chinese Americans in the San Francisco Bay Area. - Protecting unauthorized immigrant mothers improves their children’s mental health - Science Journal
This 2017 article outlines causal evidence of the impact of parents’ unauthorized immigration status on the health of their U.S. citizen children. - Recommendations for Management of Diabetes During Ramadan - Update 2010
The purpose of this article is to evaluate new data that has emerged since the publication of the original 2005 article, and refine recommendations. - Recommendations for Management of Diabetes During Ramadan
Fasting is quite common among Muslims with diabetes. A group of endocrinologists and diabetologists from a number of Muslim and non-Muslim countries proposed this set of recommendations to invite an open dialogue on the topic, offer a set of medical opinions and suggestions, and identify topics of research needed to answer important medical questions regarding fasting during Ramadan. - Refugees' perspectives on barriers to communication about trauma histories in primary care
Journal article (2012) from "Mental Health in Family Medicine" that explores refugees' perspectives regarding the nature of communication barriers that impede the exploration of trauma histories in primary care. - Transcultural Psychiatry - SAGE Journals
Transcultural Psychiatry is a fully peer reviewed international journal that publishes original research and review articles on cultural psychiatry and mental health. Cultural psychiatry is concerned with the social and cultural determinants of psychopathology and psychosocial treatments of the range of mental and behavioural problems in individuals, families and communities.