Culture diversity/a mobile workforce command creative leadership, new partnerships, and innovative approaches to integration

Today's healthcare environment requires that nursing leaders meet the needs of a growing multicultural workforce and patient population. Cultural factors may be overlooked as healthcare delivery becomes increasingly dominated by technological, economic, and social changes. Through creative leadership, the chief nurse executive (CNE) can encourage staff to pay closer attention to cultural factors that will impact on patient, staff, and hospital outcomes. The CNE can begin by enhancing his/her own multicultural competency, building these competencies in his/her staff, and then empowering staff to respect and accommodate cultural differences. An understanding to transcultural nursing theory can enhance the development and maintenance of a multicultural perspective. The use of Madeline Leininger's Culture Care modalities can assist staff in making culturally competent decisions and in implementing actions. This article will provide an overview of one community hospital's experiences in integrating a multicultural perspective to better meet the needs of specific patient populations.