Cultural Competence and the Postoperative Experience: Pain Control and Rehabilitation

Healthcare inequities exist across healthcare and have been shown to influence patient care and outcomes. In the field of orthopaedic surgery, healthcare disparities have been shown to manifest in the realms of postoperative pain management and rehabilitation. Previous literature has demonstrated that socioeconomic status, sex, gender, race, and ethnicity influence postoperative pain management and can precipitate a negative patient experience, manifesting as poorly managed pain and undertreatment of minorities and patients of lower socioeconomic status. A similar body of literature has revealed similar barriers in postoperative rehabilitation, particularly with regard to accessibility, language, rapport, and culture. These disparities impact patients, ranging from diminished surgical satisfaction to postoperative morbidity. As the United States becomes increasingly diverse, cultural competence plays a major role in combating these disparities. This article presents methods to promote cultural competence, including greater diversity in the medical field, a greater emphasis on cultural competency in education and training programs at all levels of healthcare, increased resources allocated to researching healthcare inequities, and more effective mechanisms of patient education.