Providing cultural care behind the spotlight at the Olympic Games

Abstract

The Olympic Games constitutes the world's largest sporting event. Nurses play an important, but poorly discussed, role in emergency care, routine clinical care and preventive care for athletes from many cultures as well as an enormous influx of spectators. In this article, we discuss five important considerations when preparing nurses to provide safe care for Olympians: elite athletes as a cultural group; caring for the Olympic family; disaster preparedness and security; infection control; and principles of transcultural nursing. Because of the nature of the sports and types of injuries and the effects of climate, these challenges differ somewhat between the summer and winter Olympics. Nevertheless, the Olympic games provide a tremendous opportunity to experience transcultural nursing and to highlight how nurses play a significant role in the care of the athletes, the Olympic family, and the spectators.