My name is Megan, and I'm in my final year of a Bachelor of Occupational Therapy. I'm of Maori, Scottish, Welsh, Irish, and Cornish descent. As a person of mixed ancestry, who identifies more with a minority culture in a post-colonial nation, I find myself straddling two different worlds in my daily life, including the way in which I view my health and well-being. Despite being in my mid-thirties, and living in a country where indigenous values and meaning are recognised to some extent within the healthcare system, and in healthcare education, I still encounter difficulties on a routine basis within the health sector. This can, at times, be frustrating. Having a bicultural experience of health and well-being, of personal and community values, the language I use to express myself, and the ways in which I find meaning in my life, I am subject to conflict of some philosophical kind in most things that I do and most places I go. If it can be difficult for me, having the advantage of being born and raised in this country, and belonging to a culture that is specifically touched upon within mainstream education, I wondered how difficult it may be for those from other minority cultures, especially those that are more recent arrivals, and for whom English is a second language. My life's journey has constituted exposure to two main cultural experiences, mainstream western New Zealand, and Te Ao Maori (the Maori world). Here is a picture of New Zealand's population at the 2006 census, the values do not add up to 100%, as individuals who identified as belonging to more than one ethnicity were added to each category that they acknowledged:
(Statistics New Zealand, 2013)
As you can see, 42.8% of the population identified as something other than just European, and 28.2% identified as something other than just European and/or Maori. This tells me that communication and values for over a quarter of the population of New Zealand could be significantly different to what I am accustomed to. In order to be the best therapist I can be, I am going to expand my learning, step outside my cultural comfort zone, and take a look at a world that is right on my doorstep.
Reference
Statistics New Zealand. (2013). Ethnic groups (from 2006 census) [graph]. Retrieved from http://www.stats.govt.nz/browse_for_stats/snapshots-of-nz/nz-in-profile-2013/about-new-zealand.aspx
Hi Megan, I didn't realise that there was so many different cultures in our country. I always try and provide people the respect to greet them in their own language. Been lucky enough to travel around the world I realise the value of a greeting. If you can show a person that you care about their culture the rapport building will be a easier process.
ReplyDeleteTravel must be such an amazing way to experience the values of people different from oneself, and must provide a great opportunity for reflection. It's awesome that you recognised the value of a greeting, and the value of a genuine attempt to engage others in a way that is special to them. I can't wait to travel myself, in order to be able to have similar experiences. I think your experience will only add to your value as an occupational therapist :)
DeleteRecently I wrote of an experience of being left disheartened because of the lack of knowledge about the history of Waikato Tainui, disheartened because we live within Waikato. What this essentially means though, is I have set the standard for myself and that bar is high. If my expectation is that people should know something about the local iwi the local culture then that too is the expectation I have of myself. Unfortunately through my fieldwork placements I haven't had any opportunities to work with other indigenous people, predominantly I have worked with Paakehaa and only a few Maaori. I too have to draw on my experience of travelling to reflect on my interactions with people of different cultures. I found sharing information about your culture worked. Take that time to listen and share, as occupational therapist we know better than anyone that there is more than one way of doing things.
ReplyDeleteI think you touch upon an interesting point, and that is that the person who values a cultural norm, and who values understanding of a cultural norm, needs to be involved in educating others on that cultural norm. Unfortunately we can't rely on the education system to do it all for us, and we can't expect people to automatically be interested, just because we are. I've also found that sharing my knowledge and experience of my culture on forums like Facebook has helped others to understand a little better not only Te Ao Maori, but the experience of those who live in collectivist cultures, as opposed to individualistic ones. I can't wait to learn more about the application of OT in a kaupapa Maori environment, as I believe that it will benefit me in any field or role that I end up in.
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