Guiding the Process of Culturally Competent Care With Hispanic Patients: A Grounded Theory Study.

Purpose: To explore nursing care actions that lead to culturally competent care for Hispanic patients.

Background: Nurses report apprehension when delivering nursing care because of language barriers and a lack of Hispanic cultural understanding. Research is needed to inform culturally aware nursing practice actions for Hispanic patients.

Design: The study used a qualitative, grounded theory design to address the questions: (a) What cultural knowledge should nurses have when caring for Hispanic patients and families and (b) What nursing actions should nurses take to provide culturally competent care? Hispanic lay health promoters and Hispanic community members were interviewed to make recommendations for care.

Results: A model was identified that informs culturally competent nursing care. "Connectedness," the central phenomenon, describes nursing actions and contains subthemes explaining influences on nursing care. "Up to You" and "At the Mercy of the System" are descriptive themes influencing connectedness.

Conclusion: Connectedness is central to culturally well-informed nurse-patient interactions.