World-first Cultural Safety Training To Be Embedded In Doctors Education

The first Cultural Safety Training Plan world-wide to be
implemented into the curriculum of medical specialist
training will mark a turning point in New Zealanders
experiences with their doctor, says Chair of Te Ohu Rata O
Aotearoa (Te ORA) Professor David Tipene-Leach, and Council
of Medical Colleges Chair, Dr Samantha
Murton. 
 

The Cultural Safety
Training Plan for Vocational Medicine in Aotearoa was
launched with a celebration breakfast and symposium this
morning at Te Wharewaka O Pōneke.

“The Cultural
Safety Training Plan is a key part of the big move toward
achieving equity and the aspiration of Māori reaching our
full health potential,” Professor Tipene-Leach
said.

“The Cultural Safety Training Plan provides
curricula foundation for medical colleges’ training
programmes. We want to support doctors as they train and
retrain to undertake culturally safe practice, as defined by
the patients and whānau they serve,” Dr Murton
said.

Cultural Safety for doctors looks like examining
the impact of their own culture on their work with patients;
a commitment to address any of their own biases, attitudes,
assumptions, stereotypes, prejudices that may affect the
quality of care provided to patients; and engaging in
ongoing self-reflection and self-awareness to hold
themselves accountable for providing culturally safe care,
as defined by the patient and their communities.

This
training plan has been designed to reflect the unique
context of Aotearoa. Whilst cultural safety is applicable to
all cultural, ethnic, religious and other social groups, its
focus on Māori health outcomes is immediately obvious and
intentional.

“This is a significant project, and I
want to thank everyone involved from the Council of Medical
Colleges, researchers and Te ORA for how we have worked
together to develop this Training Plan,” Professor
Tipene-Leach said.

The Cultural Safety Training Plan
responds to the 2019 statement from the Medical Council of
New Zealand (MCNZ) that medical education in Aotearoa should
include a focus on cultural safety. It builds upon the
independent research findings on the current state of
cultural safety and health equity delivered by doctors in
Aotearoa New Zealand developed by Te ORA and the Medical
Council of New Zealand in 2020. Colleges already have Hauora
Māori and cultural competence training well embedded in
their curricula -cultural safety is in addition to those
pieces of work.

The Cultural
Safety Training Plan for Vocational Medical Training in
Aotearoa can be downloaded here, and the earlier
work Literature
and Environmental Scan of Cultural Safety in Medical
Training downloaded
here

© Scoop Media