cultural competence

In case you didn’t already know, medical schools look at more than just statistics when considering an applicant. Among many factors, they want to see future students who can exhibit the AAMC's 15 Core Competencies for Entering Medical Students. In this article we’ll be exploring Cultural Competence. Let’s talk about what it means, how most pre-meds satisfy it, and how you can make your Cultural Competence stand out among the pool of applicants.

Do you know what ‘machismo’ is and how might it affect Latino men’s health or family dynamics? Do you know why many Jehovah’s Witnesses disagree with blood transfusions? Are you aware of the disparities that have led to greater maternal and infant mortality in African American women and babies? These are just a few of the questions that physicians need to explore in their goal to provide culturally competent care. There’s the key buzzword - the triple C - ‘culturally competent care.’ It might sound like a broken record in pre-meds’ essays and activities, but it has both intrinsic and practical value for you as a future physician. This article will do its best to deconstruct and simplify the term ‘cultural competence,’ while also providing some concrete examples.