Evaluating Providence Health Care’s Cultural Safety Education Initiative for Healthcare Social Workers: Preliminary Results

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this research paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of the Indigenous cultural safety (ICS) workshops run by Providence Health Care (PHC). There is a focus on identifying what confidence and cultural safety are and how they can be obtained in practice with social workers in a healthcare setting.

Methodology: Three virtual mix-methods surveys were created and administered throughout December 2022 to February 2023. The surveys required participants to self-assess their attitudes, beliefs, knowledge, and skills as they relate to cultural safety in their practice. Survey groups included a control group which completed a one-time survey. Participants of this group did not attend the ICS workshops. The second group included the intervention group who were required to complete a pre-test survey prior to attending an ICS workshop as well as a post-test survey after attendance. The post-test survey included questions about the workshops themselves for further investigation. Quantitative responses were analyzed using an independent t-test (control and intervention responses) and paired t-test (pre-test and post-test responses). Qualitative responses were analyzed using thematic analysis.

Findings - The independent sample t-test yielded no statistically significant responses between the control and intervention group. The paired t-test yielded significant positive results demonstrating that social workers felt that they had an improved ability to locate services for trauma survivors, recognize and employ trauma-informed practices, and educate colleagues on trauma-informed care post ICS workshops. The post-test specific responses demonstrated that social workers felt that the ICS workshops provided a valuable aspect to their learning as practitioners. The qualitative responses from participants highlighted the success of the ICS workshops, specifically the use of the case vignettes. Opportunities for improvement included prioritizing the safety of the space through less leadership involvement and the desire for the inclusion of the IWR team within the ICS workshops themselves.

Research Limitations: Confidence and cultural safety require corresponding outcomes based assessments to determine fidelity. Furthermore, the research evaluation occurred simultaneously to the educational initiative ICS workshop roll-out which could have an effect on research sample size and participant satisfaction.

Value of Research: There are recognized barriers to measuring confidence and the provision of culturally safe care in healthcare settings. This paper adds to the pool of knowledge that social workers do see value in this type of workshop training.