Defining Culture...

Ok, I have been called on the carpet this week for speaking to "culture change" but not defining what culture it is we want to change in long term care. This came to me from a new reader via email.

So after receiving said email; I sat back and observed, thought and experienced my communities culture full throttle this week. If you have never done so; the next time you find yourself in a public setting that involves members of your community, I encourage you to sit back and observe the people and what they are doing, saying and the interactive behaviors that occur. Trust me this can be a fun yet frightening experience.

I spent Friday night in full bologna queen regalia, (crown, sash, fancy dress and heels) to be part of the high school homecoming parade in Yale. Needless to say, this cultural event was wrought with great observation about the culture of our town, its people and the rituals that have existed for many years...My next opportunity came today as I went with my parents to a small town dinner fundraiser at a local township hall for the fire department. Picture a simple wooden building where indoor plumbing was an after thought; situated 25 miles from any main city/town with services. The food is always phenomenal at these small town events; always served family style on mismatched donated dishes with home made pie for dessert..The culture of middle small town America at it's finest. In comparison to last week where I attended a black tie social event for a main religious community of metro Detroit. Different cultures, different rituals, different norms.

For those of you not raised in, or having never lived in a small tight knit community the culture may appear/act/feel very different from what the culture you were socialized or live in. To use a tool that my boss uses, (thanks for always having a Webster's handy...) I took the time to research the common definition of culture. Per Wikipedia; "Culture has been called "the way of life for an entire society." As such, it includes codes of manners, dress, language, religion, rituals, norms of behavior such as law and morality, and systems of belief".

As providers of health care, I think we often refer to the culture as the norms that we have come to know inside of our own care communities and provider associations. The culture of care that I seek change for is the pervasive culture of what nursing homes are in America; and the societal norms that people perceive to be true about aging and long term care facilities. How we as providers define our culture of care is vastly different from what society feels our cultural norms are. As the provider we are obligated to create a change for how society and we ourselves view our culture of care. We must not accept the current norms to be continued if we seek to exist in a positive light for society. Care is evolving, and our cultural norms; rituals, and beliefs about what we do must evolve and change with the needs of society.

Further, depending on where your facility is located, what community you draw from will greatly impact the culture of your building and we need to be ever aware of the impact this has on us as providers. Using a one shoe fits all model; does not work for care providers. We must mesh our culture to impact the overall community culture in a positive win/win situation. Nothing is worse then having cultural conflict between a provider and the community it serves. It will not bode well for your reputation or opportunity to become the provider of choice.

So this little lesson on how I perceive culture is brought to you via an email question. I hope this helps you to understand what it is I speak of when I refer to culture and why change is needed.