Occupational therapy and cultural understanding – Cross-cultural experiences in a newly established occupational therapy service in Qinghai Province, China

Abstract

Good cross-cultural understanding and communication is required to provide a high quality and equitable occupational therapy (OT) service. In this study we explored the cross-cultural understanding of OT staff in a newly established OT department in Qinghai Province in Western China using semi-structured interviews. Although the OTs, who were still in the process of developing an understanding of their service even within their own culture, showed some understanding of the cultures of their clients, their main desire was to demonstrate that they treated all clients equally and without prejudice. The therapists' thinking in this emerging setting is described and discussed. We conclude that there is a real need, in China, for training in the development of cultural competency for OTs. In areas where there are many distinct cultures, the employment of interpreters who not only translate but act as cultural advocates would greatly improve the overall quality of the service.

Keywords:

• Cultural learning
• Language interpretation
• Religious beliefs
• Health advocate
• Hui
• Tibetan
• Han Chinese