Date of Award

2010

Document Type

Scholarly Project

Degree Name

Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT)

Department

Occupational Therapy

First Advisor

Carla Wilhite

Keywords

Cultural Competency -- education; Health Status Disparities -- Wyoming; Healthcare Disparities -- Wyoming; Indians, North American -- Wyoming

Abstract

The authors have created a cultural competency guide on the history, culture, and beliefs of the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone tribes as well as an overview of current health concerns and resulting health disparities. The creation of the guide is necessary in order to provide information about these cultures to occupational therapists (OT) working with them. However, there is considerable lack of resources for discussing cultural competency regarding these tribes in relation to occupational therapy.

In preparing to create the guide, an extensive literature review was conducted to determine cultural issues and health disparities of the two tribes. Secondary sources were also utilized to describe the history, spiritual practices, and traditional healing practices of these populations.

This product is an informative, useful resource for OT's in Wyoming. The cultural competency guide is an effective means of beginning the process of cultural competence for OTIs that provide treatment to these tribes. The intended outcome is to help OT's begin the process of developing cultural competency, resulting in the ability of OT's to honestly and effectively provide quality care to members of the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone nations.

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