Doctors offices, clinics, and hospitals see this diversity every day, and the need for culturally and linguistically competent health care services for diverse populations is attracting increased attention from health providers and those who judge their quality and efficiency. Cultural and linguistic competence suggests an ability by health care providers and health care organizations to understand and respond effectively to the cultural and linguistic needs brought by patients to the health care encounter. The provision of these kinds of services has the potential to improve patient outcomes and the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of health care delivery. Unfortunately, many health care providers feel they don t have clear guidance on how to prepare for or respond to these situations. As language about culturally and linguistically competent services proliferates in health policy discourse and practice, a common understanding of what this means is essential to assuring quality.
Standards offer a guidepost for many different purposes and audiences.
They set forth what should be done by service providers and how it should be done, and provide a basis for evaluation, comparison, and quality assurance by policymakers, consumers, and researchers. The Cultural and Linguistic Competence Standards and Research Agenda Project, with a two-part report submitted to OMH in May 1999, is the result of this request. Based on an analytical review of key laws, regulations, contracts, and standards currently in use by federal and state agencies and other national organizations, these recommended standards were developed with input from a national advisory committee of policymakers, health care providers, and researchers. Each standard is accompanied by commentary that addresses the proposed guideline s relationship to existing laws and standards, and offers recommendations for implementation and oversight to providers, policymakers, and advocates. While drafts of these standards have been circulated for initial comment, at this stage they are still recommendations and not mandates.