Let’s Be Lefties
SOC 350 N

In this class I have learned that even now the workplace still struggle with things such as prejudice, sexual harassment, and discrimination. Companies get sued every day for perceived violations. Businesses have been trying to hire a more diverse workforce. As healthcare professionals we work in one of the most diversified environment. As a nurse I have to take in people’s cultures and beliefs in mind. I have to be able to put myself in their place and understand where they are coming from.
This week’s assignment was to put ourselves in the world of left handed individuals, this assignment was to show us how to be different from mainstay society. It was showed me how closely we are like the majority of society. I was required to place a sock with a golf ball in our right hand. This was to force me to use only my left hand. I couldn’t drop the golf ball nor get the sock wet. I unfortunately was an utter failure at this task. I didn’t last an hour before the golf ball was dropped. The world is not designed for left handed individuals. Unfortunately right handed people are the majority. Left handed people are being discriminated by which hand they use. Can openers, mounted pencil sharpeners, and fishing rods are all made for the right handed person. My husband is left handed. This week while purchasing a new set of golf clubs for our son, my husband also looked at a set for himself. The same set of clubs for a left handed person were twice as much. He has to have a left handed rifle because if he didn’t the hot shell would eject and burn his right hand. My husband constantly amazes me in his ability to fit in this world where he is the minority. He never complains about the difficulties he has to face.
Institutional discrimination
Institutional discrimination is where a group or category of people are placed at some level of disadvantage by the normal way that society operates. An example is individuals with a criminal record. When applying for a job the employer only sees the patient’s criminal record and never looks at the individual themselves. When a student takes an IQ test they are set up to be more relevant for middle class white people to succeed. When looking for a job people can be discriminated by experience, sex, and race. Institutional discrimination can be seen in a class room. When a professor, writes exam questions that require students to have prior knowledge of a situation or phenomenon. “When a bank consistently denies loans to people of a particular race, this is an example of institutional discrimination”, (Chamberlain College of Nursing, 2015).
Cultural Competency
Cultural competency is a body of knowledge, belief, and behavior. “The concept of cultural competency has a positive effect on patient care delivery by enabling providers to deliver services that are respectful of and responsive to the health beliefs, practices, and cultural and linguistic needs of diverse patients”. (http://www.nih.gov) Cultural competency is important because it increases high quality healthcare and it shows how to be respectful and responsive to a diverse group of people. Cultural competency benefits by supporting positive health outcomes for consumers. As nurses the ability to understand, appreciate, and interact with persons from cultures or belief systems other than one's own is something that we must strive to do.
Conclusion
Since the start of this class I have learned that we all are different. No one person is the same as another. We must be tolerant of others differences. We must put ourselves in others shoes so that we can treat our patients with compassion and empathy. The world we live in still sees people in colors, sexes, and religions. But when you strip it all down we are just people. At work people still are discriminated against. When applying for a loan certain people are going to be turned down just because of who they are and not what they have. Criminals don’t get jobs because of something they may have done 20 years ago. People change and so they shouldn’t be judge based on previous mistakes.

References:
Chamberlain College of Nursing. (2015). SOC-350N. Week 1. Why understand Diversity. [Online lesson]. Downers Grove, IL: DeVry Education Group.
http://www.nih.gov/clearcommunication/culturalcompentcy.htm