As a nurse working in an acute behavioral health unit, emergency department, case management, cultural awareness is crucial when treating a diverse population of patients. According to the Office of Minority Health (OMH) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, cultural competence is “a set of behaviors, attitudes, and skills that enable nurses to work effectively in cross-cultural situations” ( Garcia, 2007, p.1). It is important for nurses to provide culturally competent and appropriate care to patients due to the ever-growing culture of diversity. My workplace is located in Orange, California. Demographically, the city is 47 percent Caucasian, 38 percent Hispanic, 11 percent Asian/Pacific Islander, 1 percent Black, and 3 percent other races. I am a Filipino-American, born and raised in California, and I identify with the Asian and Pacific Islander 11 percent group. It is necessary for practicing nurses to have cultural awareness and the skills to care for patients of any race or ethnicity. We can do this by educating ourselves and being attentive to all different cultures. A nurse can improve their direct patient care by integrating cultural competence into their method of care. The first step to developing cultural sensitivity is to examine and know yourself. One way to develop sensitivity is to assess where one stands in relation to the culture. There are cultural assessment strategies for nurses and healthcare workers. Campinha-Bacote (2002) developed the cultural competence model, which is a series of questions that help determine whether a nurse is willing to improve their cultural knowledge. Once determined if the desire is there, further assessments are taken into consideration...... middle of paper ...... problem that led to this hospitalization. The doctor ordered a re-evaluation after 21 days to determine if the herbs were the contributing factor to the patients' chest pain and shortness of breath due to tachycardia. As a nurse, I feel like I need more education to become more culturally competent. There are many paths I can take to increase my knowledge and cultural awareness. If I had more knowledge of the world, it would improve my awareness, strengthen my nursing skills, and give me a more positive attitude. This, in turn, could change my behaviors and improve my direct patient care in an acute care setting. I remind myself every day to work as a nurse without judgment, bias and bias, and to integrate research, knowledge, skills, flexibility and creativity into my practice to provide culturally competent and sensitive health care..