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Intercultural Communications

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Submitted By aliced07
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Intercultural Communications SOC 315 Cultural Diversity March 16, 2005

Abstract
This paper describes, explains and rectifies a situation that illustrates an intercultural communication issue within the work environment. A full description of the communication issue will be covered, along with the outcome of the situation. A diagnosis of the communication issue and the cultural norms involved will be discussed. Several recommendations that would have prevented the issue will also be discussed.

Intercultural Communications The world today has a growing number of contacts resulting in communication between people with different linguistic and cultural backgrounds. The communication needs to be as constructive as possible, without misunderstandings and breakdowns. Sweden like many other areas is changing into a multicultural society. The health care industry in Sweden has been one of the most ethically and gender segregated work places compared to the rest of the industry. That is beginning to change rapidly, which has created some communication issues.
Description of the Communication Issue
Context
"The chance of hearing Swedish with an accent in hospitals and other health care institutions is fairly high" (Allwood, et. al.). There is such a shortage of health care personnel that they are working abroad because they can work less hours, get higher pay and lower taxes outside of Sweden. Sweden has been recruiting health care personnel from other countries to fill the open positions due to the number of people working abroad. Physicians working in foreign countries experience cultural differences and language usage.
Outcome
This creates the need for training programs to help the physicians learn the local culture of their patients and help to minimize negative impact of cultural differences. There are a

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