Date of Award

4-2025

Degree Type

Capstone Project

Degree Name

Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD)

Department

Occupational Therapy

First Advisor

Dr. Azalia E. Gonzalez

Second Advisor

Holly Grieves, OTD, OTRL

Abstract

Background: As minority populations in the United States continue to rise, occupational therapy (OT) personnel must be equipped with the necessary skills to provide culturally responsive care to clients from diverse backgrounds. However, OT programs nationwide are lagging behind in delivering adequate cultural training to their students.

Purpose: The project aimed to develop an instructional module for promoting cultural competence and humility among OT students.

Method: The DCE involved three months of in-depth research and collaboration with diverse cultural advisors, including African American, Asian American, Hispanic and/or Latino American, and Muslim representatives, to develop a teaching module. The instructional module featured a two-hour recorded presentation, a quiz, and a discussion, followed by in-class activities such as an implicit bias test, case studies, practical simulations of various cultural and religious practices, role-playing and debriefing. A pre-and-post assessments were conducted to assess students’ cultural competence, awareness, and comfortability when working with diverse populations.

Results: A total of 34 students completed the pre-and-post assessments. The results indicated a significant increase in cultural competence and a higher level of comfortability when working with minority clients and their caregivers. Students also had an increase in cultural awareness and sensitivity with resources and strategies to address barriers and implicit biases.

Conclusion: The results highlight the importance of ongoing cultural training in OT programs to equip students with necessary skills when working with diverse populations. Cultural humility is a lifelong learning process, thus, requiring continue exposure and learning opportunities beyond a single instructional module.

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