Grand Rounds: Cultural Humility and Communication: How to Reduce Ethical Quandaries and Communication Gaps

Objectives (Educational Content) :

1. Define and distinguish cultural humility and articulate why a humility-based framework is more responsive to the dynamic nature of patient and family identity in pediatric care.

2.Identify how implicit bias, power differentials, and assumptions about race, ethnicity, religion, language, and socioeconomic status contribute to ethical conflicts and breakdowns in clinical communication.

3. Apply practical, evidence-based communication strategies (e.g., teach-back, professional interpreter use, narrative medicine techniques) that center the patient and family's values and lived experience.

4.Analyze clinical case scenarios in which cultural misunderstanding escalated into ethical dilemmas and propose approaches that might have reduced harm or conflict.

Target Audience:

General pediatricians, family physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, social workers, psychologists, and nurses.

Identified Gap:

Many clinicians continue to rely on static notions of cultural competence rather than practicing cultural humility, limiting their ability to recognize how implicit bias, power dynamics, and assumptions about patient identity affect communication and decision-making in pediatric care. This gap contributes to misunderstandings, ethical conflicts, and inconsistent use of evidence-based communication strategies—such as teach-back, interpreter services, and narrative approaches—that effectively center patient and family values. As a result, clinicians may be underprepared to identify and address culturally driven communication breakdowns or prevent ethical dilemmas, highlighting the need for improved skills in applying culturally responsive, humility-based communication practices.

Estimated Time to Complete the Educational Activity:

1 hour(s)

Expiration Date for CE/CME Credit:

06-11-2027

Method of Participation in the Learning Process:

The learner will view the presentation, successfully complete a post-test and complete an activity evaluation.

Evaluation Methods:

All learners must successfully complete a post-test, as well as an activity evaluation, to claim CE/CME credit.

Disclosure:

The following CME Committee/Planning Committee member(s) has the following financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose: Merck - Maria Cristina Victorio, MD All financial relationships have been mitigated. All remaining CME and planning committee members have returned their disclosure forms, indicating that they have no financial relationships with ineligible companies. 

Accreditation Statement:

Children’s Hospital Medical Center of Akron is accredited by the Ohio State Medical Association to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

CHMCA designates this enduring material activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit TM.  Physicians should only claim the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Bibliography:

 1. Tervalon M, Murray-García J. Cultural humility versus cultural competence. J Health Care Poor Underserved. 1998;9(2):117-25.

2. Kibakaya EC, Oyeku SO. Cultural Humility: A Critical Step in Achieving Health Equity. Pediatrics. 2022;149(2):e2021052883.

3.So N, et al. The importance of cultural humility and cultural safety in health care. MJA. 2024;220(1):12-13.