| 1King Abdullah International Medical Research Centre, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 2School of Nursing, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia |
Abstract This paper provides an overview of the cultural perspectives and practices in Saudi Arabia that could help expatriate health care providers to understand Saudi culture and enhance cultural competence. The healthcare system in Gulf countries, particularly, Saudi Arabia, is mainly staffed by expatriate nurses, who account for 67.7% of the total number of nurses. This gives rise to a multicultural environment in the hospital, where people of different cultures interact with each other and take care of Saudi patients who are from the dominant culture. In this scenario, a lack of knowledge of Saudi culture among nurses can lead to cultural conflicts and misunderstanding of some of the behaviours and practices of the indigenous Saudi people. Culture is a complex notion; however, being aware of cultural differences and having cultural knowledge can help people to interact safely. Educating expatriate nurses about the cultural heritage of the Saudi people, which is mainly influenced by Islamic teachings, is important to increase cultural harmony. Key words: Saudi Arabia, expatriate, nurses, culture, cultural difference Citation: Almutairi AF, McCarthy A. A multicultural nursing workforce and cultural perspetives in Saudi Arabia: An overview. theHealth. 2012;3(3):71-74. Correspondence: Adel F Almutairi, King Abdullah International Medical Research Centre, King Saud bin Abdul Aziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, PO Box 22490 - Riyadh 11426.
E-mail: adel.f.m@hotmail.com Full Text PDF (112KB) | Associated Material DOAJ record |
