A framework for promoting cultural competency among future health professionals

Cultural competency is an important skill for health professionals, particularly in today's multicultural world. We overview a cultural competency demonstration program aimed at health-related majors using a peer-education and service-learning project involving domestic and international college students. Our demonstration project features a 12-session, theory-based peer education program aimed at developing cultural competency among domestic students while simultaneously facilitating international students' physical activity (PA) participation. The project uses diverse peer education formats (i.e., peer cooperation, peer counseling, peer modeling, peer tutoring) to promote multiple factors that influence PA participation (e.g., knowledge, self-efficacy, and skills). Depending on class size, peer groups are comprised of one or two international students for every one domestic student. The domestic students come from a health-related major or minor (e.g., kinesiology, health science). Peers meet formally once or twice per week depending on the length of the academic term (i.e., quarters or semesters). Approximately one hour is devoted to each session. The program features both cognitive and activity-based sessions. Sample sections include discussing how to merge PA into one's daily life; domestic peers assisting international peers with setting a goal and developing a plan to increase PA; American peers teaching their international peer partner a typical “American” physical activity. The content of this demonstration project can be modified based on different health behaviors and other factors such as ethnicity, gender, region, or time of year. This framework can be adapted into other physical activity (PA) and health promotion curriculums or college health promotion programs.