Addressing Cultural Competency: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Cancer Care

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) individuals face mental and physical health disparities. Fear of discrimination and organizational care incompetency promotes avoidance of care and nondisclosure of sexual orientation and gender identity. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this article is to evaluate the outcomes of cultural competency training for interprofessional staff to foster safe and inclusive LGBTQ cancer care and address this population’s care needs. METHODS: One-hour cultural competency training focused on assessing bias, increasing health knowledge, and creating a safe environment. Fifteen sessions trained 110 participants. Pre-and post-training surveys evaluated staff’s LGBTQ health knowledge and cultural competency self-efficacy. FINDINGS: Staff were significantly more likely to agree with the following statements post-training: “Organizations should make their bathrooms accessible to gender-variant patients/families and staff,” “I am likely to intervene in a homophobic interaction at work,” “I am confident in asking gender identity questions that are appropriate to my job,” and “I am confident in my ability to provide appropriate LGBTQ resources for my patients.”.