Cultural Competence

Goal - why is this important to us?

Dawn Farm seeks to identify and remove barriers that prevent addicts and alcoholics from joining the recovering community. Dawn Farm seeks to achieve this mission with addicts and alcoholics of all backgrounds and cultural identities.  To achieve this mission, Dawn Farm must maintain strong ties to the community and most importantly, the recovering community. Dawn Farm’s interactions with clients, the recovering community, and the larger community will be characterized by dignity, respect and sensitivity.

What is cultural competence?

Cultural Competency - An ongoing process by which individuals and systems respond respectfully and effectively to all people in a manner that recognizes, affirms and values the worth of individuals, families, and communities and protects and preserves the dignity of each.

Meeting the Cultural Needs of Clients

Dawn Farm strives to meet the needs of culturally diverse groups. We do this by employing a staff that represents the cultural groups most often served by Dawn Farm, sending staff to workshops on cultural competence and requiring annual training on cultural competence for all Dawn Farm staff. 

Dawn Farm actively seeks therapists and other staff from racially, ethnically and sexually diverse populations in order to better respond to client needs. 

The organization will recruit and maintain a diverse representation on program staff and the Board of Trustees that reflects the demographics of the community. 

In addition, clients are encouraged to freely discuss ways our programs might better address their cultural needs, cultural/racial tensions are dealt with openly in group sessions and the use of racial, religious, sexual or cultural slurs by clients or staff is strictly prohibited. 

While attending to the above, we continually emphasize the larger community to which all our clients belong - the recovering community.

Dawn Farm will promote awareness of cultural differences and concerns, develop knowledge of cultural issues, and continually strive to improve its cultural proficiency. This includes the “culture of recovery”, which is often misunderstood or underappreciated by professional helpers. To achieve this goal, Dawn Farm will assess the following areas on an ongoing basis:

• Environment

• Communication

• Personnel

• Employee, client and community feedback

• Policy and written material

On an ongoing basis, the following shall occur:

• Offer training to all staff on cultural competence

• Review turnover of personnel to assess for cultural competence

• Analyze feedback from consumers and personnel via satisfaction surveys

Steps - what do I do? 

Personnel

• The Clinical Director will ensure that all personnel are offered cultural competence training at least one time per year.

• The Human Resources Coordinator will annually review personnel turnover to determine if a pattern or significant difference exists in the race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc. of personnel leaving the organization.

Environment

• The program coordinator will ensure that the physical environment is welcoming to all cultures.

• Remove any negative or punitive signs.

• Personnel cheerfully and professionally greet all clients with a “you are a welcomed guest” attitude.

Organizational Diversity

• Dawn Farm will strive to ensure that the cultures of our clients are represented in Dawn Farm leadership, management, direct care and support staff.

Communication

• The program coordinator will ensure that translation services are available to anyone who requests it.

• Dawn Farm will post “I speak” posters in waiting rooms or admission office areas.

• If Dawn Farm finds that a significant portion of clients speak a language other than English, Dawn Farm will print materials in that language. 

Reporting

• The Clinical Director will review and report on client grievances for any patterns of complaints that are identity-based or cultural in nature.

• Dawn Farm will integrate findings from the cultural competency assessment into the annual management plan, summarizing strengths and areas to address.

Outreach

• Dawn Farm will enhance community awareness of our services by participating in community events, fairs, and by making staff available for public speaking at community group meetings.

• Dawn Farm will establish written referral agreements and/or collaborate with a diverse array of service providers.