Nine constructs of cultural competence for curriculum development

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Education
• Health Sciences
• Cultural Competence Research

Background:

• Cultural competence is crucial in healthcare for effective patient care.
• Pharmacy curricula require assessment tools to address diverse patient populations.
• The Clinical Cultural Competency Questionnaire (CCCQ) was selected for evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the CCCQ as a self-administered tool.
• To assess pharmacy students' perceived cultural competence at Xavier University.
• To inform curriculum development for the pharmacy program.

Main Methods:

• The CCCQ was administered to pharmacy students in Spring 2009.
• Exploratory factor analysis (principal components, varimax rotation) was used.
• Statistical analysis identified key factors of cultural competence.

Main Results:

• A nine-factor model with 46 items emerged from the CCCQ.
• These factors explained 79% of the variance in self-assessed cultural competence.
• The CCCQ proved to be a valid and reliable instrument.

Conclusions:

• The CCCQ is a practical tool for assessing pharmacy students' cultural competence.
• It effectively measures knowledge, skills, attitudes, and cross-cultural encounters.
• The instrument facilitates targeted curriculum development to meet identified student needs.