Essay Example on Grand Torino: Culture & Cultural Desires

Introduction

I have watched the movie Grand Torino directed by Clint Eastwood, and the movie is very interesting and educative in terms of various aspects of the culture of the people (Eastwood, 2008). Watching the movie enabled me to recognize why culture is important and the difference that exists among the people because of their cultural diversity. There are many factors that influence the culture of the people, which include religion.

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Culture Desire

Cultural desire is the motivation of the nurses to desire to engage their patients and other stakeholders in the health center to become culturally aware. When health professionals become more knowledgeable about the culture of their patients, it increases their skills in terms of being able to handle different encounters (Campinha-Bacote, 2002). The culture also informs the nurses on how to handle the nurses. The medical profession involves understanding the patient and having a relationship with the patients to offer personalized medication. Different patients require different kinds of medication; therefore, having a close relationship with the patient helps in tailor-made treatment options. The culture that is reflected in the movie is the pop culture and is indicated by the actors in the movie.

The movie focuses on the religious culture, which is a moral core in multicultural America. The modernization of the world has influenced the religious culture of the people; hence the movie criticizes the changes that are happening in the religious world (Eastwood, 2008). The religious culture desire influences the choice made by the health professionals in handling different challenges during medication. The nurses can handle the patients and their culture. The aging story of Walt in the movie influenced the funeral; hence the stakeholder needs to know how to handle the situation.

Cultural Awareness

Cultural awareness entails the personal examination and detailed analysis of an individual's professional as well as cultural background (Campinha-Bacote, 2002). "Gran Torino" is one of the films that are essential in the examination and exploration of cultural awareness. There is a dire need for cultural awareness in this era where we are living in diverse communities. The first scene in the movie that has made me self-examine cultural awareness is when Walt despises the Hmong, who has come into his neighborhood and started transforming it into a crime-filled community. Walt is culturally biased and mistakes the values of the Hmong people. He is harsh and disrespectful to Thao, and such an attitude is applied to the entire Hmong population in the neighborhood. This incidence alone made me analyze, evaluate, and examine how well I could have related to Thao and the Hmong community if I were Walt. Without interacting with a person, you cannot understand their culture. Thao and Walt learn from each other's culture, and they subsequently become mutual friends.

As a professional nurse, my clients come from diverse backgrounds, and I must treat them well regardless of their race. I feel that the movie has made me aware of the importance of freely interact with people from diverse backgrounds and understanding their cultural values. Such an experience has mutual benefits because they learn from you as you learn from them. During the interaction, I pay close attention to aspects such as cuisine, clothing, and cultural norms. Cultural awareness significantly helps a practicing nurse and boosts the nurse-patient relationship (Campinha-Bacote, 2002). When you treat your patient as a friend, they feel satisfied, and they can trust that you will improve their health by offering the best services. Knowledge is never sufficient, and being culturally aware should be a norm for every nurse.

Reference

Campinha-Bacote, J. (2002). The process of cultural competence in the delivery of healthcare services: A model of care. Journal of transcultural nursing, 13(3), 181-184.

Eastwood, C. (2008). Gran Torino [Film]. U.S. and Canada.