Cultural Competence and the Culture of Medicine

The phrase “cultural competence” arises often in discussions about improving medical education and health care in the United States. It is usually used to refer to a body of knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behavior in which physicians ought to be trained if they are to deliver “sensitive,” “empathetic,” “humanistic” care that is “respectful” of patients, involves effective “patient-centered communication,” and responds to patients' “psychosocial issues and needs.” It is commendable that the authors who address these attributes think of them as professional abilities that can be taught and implemented in clinical training, rather than primarily as virtues associated with moral . . .