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Learn about Cultural Diversity from a Culturally Unified Organization

Dan Thorne • Oct 07, 2021

Behavioral health organizations have difficulty implementing cultural diversity and inclusion plans. Business magazines report daily on how to create this type of environment. Hire more persons of color. Be more inclusive putting people in leadership from different cultures, sexual orientation/gender, or intersectionality. But the more the print media makes suggestions, the less likely things change. 


On this Indigenous Peoples’ day of 2021, I thought it would be beneficial to back away from the pressure of cultural diversity and explore the converse principle. Instead of looking at cultural awareness of different cultures, what would it be like to work for a culturally unified organization? At Praxes, we currently work with a Native American tribe. The tribe’s council is setting up a behavioral health clinic to provide services for tribal members. Praxes is helping them become CARF accredited and Medicaid providers in their state. One task in our project was to write a cultural competency plan for them. 


Developing mental health services for Native Americans is a large undertaking. They have a higher percentage of unemployment, incarceration, poverty, violence, historical trauma, substance use, and other mental health problems than any other cultural group. Yet for them to achieve their mental health requires a blend of traditional mental health approaches coupled with the customs, legends, and traditions of their tribe.


Doing a cultural plan for the tribe is about diversity and unity simultaneously. Because everyone, although they have differences, will be from the same culture, heritage, and ancestry. So their plan, as a homogenous group, does away with the differences between people and focuses on their similarities. So that the plan includes the following areas:



1.     Hiring people who understand the culture and needs of the tribe.

2.    Having leadership who belong and participate in the tribal community. 

3.    Treating everyone with respect and understanding of the tribe’s customs and traditions.

4.    Working with community organizations and partners.

5.    Participating in or supporting cultural events.

6.    Training staff to understand the culture.

7.    Helping clients connect to their tribal values, land, and family.


If you review these principles, they work well for the employees, clients, and community of the tribe and their council. But if you extrapolate these principles to diverse populations, you will see they also apply. Because an organization cannot be culturally diverse unless it is culturally united in its values.


Praxes provides program development and accreditation as part of its consulting services. For more information, please contact us. 

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