Vietnamese in America: a case study in cross-cultural health education

The rescue of the "boat people" from Vietnam is not over when they reach American shores . Adjustment problems abound . Health professionals are in a good position to help immigrants, but because of the language barrier and unfamiliarity with foreign cultures, there has been little success, despite the best of intentions. This paper attempts to highlight the importance of understanding culture in health education, using the Vietnamese as a case study.