Paddle with me
Now it’s time to sail!! Let’s see what you’ve got!
Module 6 is about pulling everything together, reflecting back on your work, reviewing your resources and portfolio and showing Kumu what you’ve learned. The required resources include articles meant to assist you in the Final Case Study. At this point in the course, you should be able to portray a leadership role in promoting child health in the Pacific Region.
Make sure to thoroughly review all the materials in this lesson. This last lesson of the course will prepare you for the Final Case Study worth 140 points (28% of your overall course grade).
Give yourself plenty of time this week, completing all required graded activities early – leaving time for the Final Case Study… ALL DUE BY FRIDAY, AUGUST 12, 2016
First, watch the short video about navigating – Nainoa Thompson’s navigating skills are shared within the night sky, as the best time of navigating the Pacific is in the night sky. I hope you see your way now, as you start to navigate through your new knowledge.
The Cassidy article provides a provocative discussion on assessing dietary intake where there is often a fundamental difference in the “meaning of food”. Cassidy writes (referring to when asking a “client” about what they eat),
“Though focused on food and diet issues, these questions actually fall into the larger category of questions about meaning or the various ‘ways of knowing’ (paradigms, world views, explanatory models) that people use to make sense of their daily lives as well as of the extraordinary events that sometimes occur. Historically, nutritionists and epidemiologists have been little concerned with questions of meaning. Therefore, it is appropriate to begin by asking, when do researchers who want to assess the diet of a person or group need to know about meaning? Perhaps there are settings in which meaning is not an important issue. Perhaps when the goal is nutritional assessment and the data are used merely to identify marginal diets or to explore links to morbidity and mortality data, it is not necessary for researchers to concern themselves with issues of meaning.”
Cassidy goes on to say,
“Culturally sensitive researchers recognize the subject of research (eg, the respondent to questionnaires or the supplier of blood samples) as client, that is, as having power to decide how fully to participate. They also recognize that by the questing nature of their work, they are in danger of trespassing on the cultural and psychic space of clients.”
Cassidy writes about the potential for bias and value conflicts when attempting to gather information. Some helpful tips for you.. If you’re going to be interviewing someone, are there questionnaires that already exist which have been identified as culturally sensitive? If not, when creating your own, begin with a qualitative approach. Sit with a few people in your target audience and simply “talk story” – gain rapport and build trust. Remember the Foley article – assimilate with the community, dress as they dress, respectfully and with humility. Skipping this step can be hugely detrimental to your work. When talking story, start by asking open ended questions, and then, LISTEN.
The Palafox article discusses experiences in research with Indigenous Peoples. Being culturally competent begins with recognizing and understanding your own culture, bias, and values. (we’ve tried to help you with this in the Skill Check Self-Assessment survey that you did at the beginning of the course – you will be doing it again this week to reassess yourself).
The Palafox article describes the cultures of Western research and Pacific Islander research. Although, both the Cassidy and the Palafox articles focus on research, the concepts resonate with all “outside” workers coming into the Pacific region wanting to work in the area of nutrition and public health. Keep in mind, you may be seen as an “outsider” whether you’re a health aide, nutritionist, researcher or other … to many, these are all the same. These are barriers that we need to – not overcome because that would be contributing to the power imbalance, rather recognize and then, work respectfully.
The Jessica Ball resources are wonderful tools for cultural safety in practice with children, families and community. There are tips for you on what NOT to do – in other words, indicators of cultural un-safety. The five principles of cultural safety engender the practice into a model. As Ball writes, “Practicing these principles can increase the likelihood that a person seeking help will feel respected, included, and protected in terms of their cultural identity, cherished values and goals.”
The second video is on Kiribati. This will set the stage for the final case study. You will learn in the video, what do people from Kiribati worry about? What are the health concerns?
Lastly, I’ve provided you with a short video on leadership skills – “Why credibility is the foundation of leadership”. This video poses the question: Why would anyone follow you? Barry Posner asserts that we follow people we believe are credible – competent, honest, forward-thinking, and inspirational. People will not believe the message, if they don’t believe IN the messenger. Think about these skills and concepts as you complete your case study. Think about the values that are important to Pacific Peoples – if you honor and portray these values, you are more likely to be “credible”.
Enjoy the lesson and resources – you will want to spend the majority of your time this week focusing on the final case study. Email me (Kumu) anytime this week if you have questions or need assistance. We can meet (live) if that would be more helpful. Don’t be shy! And have fun!