Today's Perspective
Kristin Wiisanen, PharmD, FAPhA, FCCP, Pharmacy Today editor in chief
As pharmacists, we are the most accessible health care providers, and for many patients, pharmacists are the first connection for patient care. In part because of our accessibility, it is essential that pharmacists are able to communicate openly and effectively with diverse populations. This has never been more important than it is today, in a time of heightening racial tensions and concern for marginalization of individuals throughout our country.
This month’s Pharmacy Today cover story (read here) focuses on an essential component of providing inclusive health care: cultural humility. At first glance, cultural humility may seem counterintuitive. It involves a commitment to self-reflection and self-awareness to enable us to better understand the diverse needs of others. Pharmacists are, without question, the medication experts. But each patient is the ultimate authority on their own life, culture, and values. The ideal patient care plan focuses on the patient’s needs as part of optimizing medication therapy, including how their cultural identity shapes their care.
The importance of seeing health care through a lens that includes patients’ cultural identities is evident throughout this issue of Today. From the need for us to “think beyond medications” when counseling patients on a healthy lifestyle (read here) to highlights of pharmacists and technicians collaborating with their communities in unique ways to improve vaccination rates (read here). Earn CPE credit and learn about the role of effective communication in preventing medication errors in this month’s CPE article (read here).
I encourage you to start a conversation with a patient today about their cultural identity and how it influences their care. Be open to the importance of cultural competence and humility in improving outcomes. I think you will find that your knowledge and experience as a pharmacist, combined with a patient’s own unique cultural perspective and values, is a winning formula for effective care.