Culture and communication in ethically appropriate care

This article considers the difficulties with using Gillon's model for health care ethics in the context of clinical practice. Everyday difficulties can arise when caring for people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds, especially when they speak little or no English. A case is presented that establishes, owing to language and cultural barriers, that midwives may have difficulty in providing ethically appropriate care to women of Pakistani Muslim origin in the UK. The use of interpreters is discussed; however, there are limitations and counter arguments to their use. Training is identified as needed to prepare service providers and midwives for meeting the needs of a culturally diverse maternity population.