Jerusalem and Israel and wonderfully diverse. But this diversity comes at a price when it comes to service provision. Often, services are offered only in Hebrew, only according to the prevalent secular Jewish-Israeli-western culture. As a result, significant portions of the population – Arab residents, new immigrants, the ultra-Orthodox – are unable to receive, or demand, proper care.
Ms. Uzma Shakir, Keynote Speaker at the May 2016 conference: “Jerusalem as a Culturally Competent City”
Cultural Competency is the ability of systems and individuals to effectively and positively adapt themselves to relevant identities, cultures, ethnic groups, etc. Cultural Competency (Sensitivity) requires an awareness that others’ worldviews are different from our own, and these sensitivities can drastically affect perceptions and interactions. Culturally competent service providers can respond in a sensitive and respectful manner to all residents, regardless of cultural or ethnic background, in a way that bridges communication gaps and facilitates resolution of issues. Culturally competent residents are aware of their rights and are able to claim them effectively.
Discussing experiences in medical interpreting
Cultural Competency includes:
- Language training for translators / interpreters to assist end users;
- Language instruction, rights awareness and training in skills that enable residents to better navigate ‘the system.’
- Sensitivity training for staff on a range of cultural issues that can hamper proper service provision;
- Cultural adaptations that make providing services not just easier, but more effective. This includes translation of signage and forms, making facilities physically and culturally accessible.
- Building professional networks for peer learning, discussion and support: regular meetings, information sheets, holiday newsletters, Wisdom of Experience newsletters.
The JICC began working on cultural competency in the health care system in 2008, with the Jerusalem Foundation as a strategic partner. Today, principles of cultural competency are also being integrated into the fields of:
- Health Care
- Welfare (municipal and National Insurance Institute);
- Education,
- Community and employment services,
- The police, and more.
More details of our work in each of these areas below the Overall Impact section.
Overall Impact:
- We developed concepts that were published as a national directive by the Israel Ministry of Health in 2011.
- In health care alone, tens of thousands of diverse Jerusalemites are impacted annually. Beneficiaries of those affected by cultural competency in other fields are expected to include additional tens of thousands of people.
- We are central to the Israeli Police Force’s efforts to become more culturally sensitive, and JICC’s programming has been implemented in health care, municipal organizations, welfare offices, national Ministries, and in the transportation sector.
- Training and informational materials developed by the JICC have become the gold standard nationwide. This includes: a set of 4 training videos and instruction manual for cultural competency in health care, developed together with Bar Ilan University; General Manual for Cultural Competency in Health Care; Multi-cultural and religious holiday newsletters; Wisdom of Experience newsletters; Cultural Competency in Community Work handbook published together with the Ministry of Welfare and Social Services.
- Dozens of institutions and professionals throughout Jerusalem that received skills and tools to improve cultural competency, such as the ALYN Rehabilitative Hospital, Hadassah Academic College, Hadassah Medical Centers, and more, have received tools to develop their own sustainable systems of cultural competency.
Cultural Competency in Health Care
Based on world experience, we started our efforts to promote cultural competence with the Jerusalem healthcare system. In partnership with the Jerusalem Foundation, in 2008 we initiated our first cultural competence program with the ALYN Hospital, Israel’s only pediatric and adolescent rehabilitation facility. Since then, Alyn has become, with our continued help, the first culturally competent hospital in Israel. Almost all its staff, including administrative employees, have undergone our day-long training seminars; linguistic interpretation has become a habit; translation of materials has become the norm; signage and services have become more and more adapted to the many groups that receive services . In short, cultural competence has become an everyday tool. In parallel, we also helped some of the Clalit Health Services HMO clinics in Jerusalem, who have many Ethiopian immigrants among their patients, to provide culturally competent services. We then moved on to Hadassah Medical Center, Bikur Holim Hospital, the Jerusalem Mental Health Center (that includes two hospitals and a number of walk-in clinics) and Shaare Tzedek Medical Center. We are now continuing the process with the other HMOs and hospitals in the city and throughout the country. In 2016 we worked with the Assuta hospital and clinic chain, making it the first national chain of medical centers to become culturally competent. Our current main focus in health care is to increase sustainability, and since 2015 we’ve been operating Training the Trainers workshops – with Assuta, Sha’are Zedek, Maccabi Health Services, and more.
As the JICC became a leading expert at the national level, we found ourselves impacting the Israeli healthcare system as a whole. Based on our local experience, in 2011, the Israel Ministry of Health formulated national standards for culturally competent care. We also published a comprehensive guide for cultural competency, and using this guide, cultural competence coordinators – a role that we invented in Israel which is now a standard in all health care organizations – are advancing their programs in the field, in hospitals and clinics throughout the country. The JICC coordinates the national forum of cultural competence coordinators, as well as an internet discussion group. Using the training kit that we developed, that includes original video vignettes that are specifically adapted to Israel/Jerusalem, presentations and other materials, we are helping staff to learn basic and advanced tools in practical cultural competence. Some of the materials were translated into English and can be found on our English publication page
From Healthcare to Other Municipal and National Systems
Based on our experience, and as demonstrated in the Jerusalem as a Culturally Competent City conference in 2016, we are now moving on to other areas – welfare departments, community workers, education, museums, police, municipal departments, etc. Step by step, we seek to improve these services in the city (and sometimes beyond). In each of these areas and disciplines, cultural competence takes a different form. Indeed, our main challenge for the future is to find ways to adapt cultural competence to these many services and make sure that this approach becomes the norm.
Israel Police
Since 2015 we’ve been working extensively with the Israeli Police. This includes training at the National Police Academy; and training in most of the precinct stations throughout the country. When finished, the project will reach most of the tens of thousands of police officers and commanders throughout the country. We are also working with the Border Police, special forces, and unique community police centers in East Jerusalem.
Police in a training course
How will this training affect police officers’ responses to everyday incidents? One officer noted: ”The training opened my eyes to the different populations we serve. That, when we’re called to an incident, I might need to act a little differently, try to respect the people’s particular customs. Our main goal is to try to ensure that the incident is over as quickly as possible, that it’s been dealt with in the most professional manner as possible, in the calmest way possible, so that we can do our jobs as best as possible.”
National Insurance Institute, East Jerusalem Branch
Since 2015 the JICC has been working with the senior management of branches of the National Insurance Institute, in East Jerusalem and elsewhere, to develop a system to implement cultural competence principles. We are exploring different models and helping to design principles for action.
“The first site to respond in French to your questions about the Israeli health care system”
Santé Israël
Begun in 2015, Santé Israël is the first web site to make Israel’s health care system accessible to French speakers. In its first year some 10,000 people visited the site, most from Israel but also 2,000 from France. In addition to developing the content of the web site and its accompanying Facebook page, Santé also holds a number of community meetings throughout Jerusalem, and is working together with the Qualita organization for French-speaking immigrants to improve access to health care and information. You can read more about it on our relevant blog category.
Holiday Information Sheets
Ethiopian Sigd Information Sheet
The JICC distributes one-page Holiday Information sheets to a broad range of health and welfare professionals throughout the country. The project began in 2013, and continues today. You can find them on our Hebrew publications page.
Jerusalem Municipality
We’ve been working with the Jerusalem Municipality on an informal level for some time, and in 2016 we began working with the Community Services Administration, which includes the Welfare Department, the Employment Authority, the Absorption Authority and the Public Health Department. We also began working with the Comptroller’s Office and the Municipality HR group to incorporate Cultural Competence throughout the municipality.
Academia
We’ve been working in-depth with the Hadassah Academic College, providing workshops to both staff and students. We have also been working with medical and nursing students at the Hadassah-Hebrew University School of Medicine and the Jerusalem College of Technology, respectively.
You can read more about what we do with regard to cultural competence at the relevant category on our blog.
