It's All About Trust and Respect: Cultural Competence and Cultural Humility in Mobile Health Clinic Services for Underserved Minority Populations

Objectives. To explore participants' perceptions of cultural competence and cultural humility in mobile health clinic (MHC) service delivery, using the Cultural Competence Model (CCM) as an organizing framework. Methods. We conducted five focus groups with an ethnically diverse group of English- and Spanish-speaking men and women, ages 20-67, residing in five underserved neighborhoods in a Southeastern U.S. city. Data analysis followed a thematic approach and iterative qualitative content analysis. Results. Participants expressed a desire for well-trained and caring staff who practice cultural humility. Conclusions. By applying the CCM's five-pronged constellation of cultural abilities, health care personnel could ultimately be more responsive to ethnically diverse clients. There is a need to reinforce compliance with Culturally Linguistic and Appropriate Service (CLAS) standards and to develop programs to increase providers' cultural awareness, knowledge, and skills that ultimately could reduce non-emergent emergency room visits and their associated costs.