Cross Cultural Palliative Care

Different cultures and religions deal with the concept of death differently.  The use of medicine and health care varies across different cultures because of the beliefs of their people. Due to varying beliefs across cultures, there is a need for cultural understanding or cultural competence in medicine, especially in palliative care. ‘In medicine, cultural competence […]

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Language Aptitude Tests for Foreign Doctors

With the well publicized case of Dr Daniel Ubani earlier this year has come the question as to how many other EU GPs practicing in the UK are ‘lost in translation’. Dr Ubani had “unlawfully killed” UK patient David Gray in 2008 after mistakenly giving him a large overdose of diamorphine.
Alongside this case came a […]

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The Middle East Unveiled: A Review

As someone in the intercultural field, a Muslim and having spent many years living, working and travelling throughout the Arab world, I am always keen to scrutinize literature aimed at business professionals seeking to improve their knowledge of the region. Donna Marsh’s “The Middle East Unveiled” is a recent edition to such literature.
With an experience […]

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The Middle East Unveiled: A Review

As someone in the intercultural field, a Muslim and having spent many years living, working and travelling throughout the Arab world, I am always keen to scrutinize literature aimed at business professionals seeking to improve their knowledge of the region. Donna Marsh’s “The Middle East Unveiled” is a recent edition to such literature.
With an experience […]

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  1. Review: Yanks in Blighty
  2. Middle East: The New Emerging-market Opportunity
  3. The cultural aspects of doing business in the Middle East

UK Immigration Laws bad for Business says Legal Sector

Government Introduction of the Immigration Cap
The UK legal sector have recently complained about the new restrictions in UK immigration law.  The changes to law have been well publicized and can be viewed by the public and all interested parties at the UK Border Agency’s website (see below).  These laws and rules represent a continual and […]

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Portsmouth Police turn to Translation Packs

The police in Portsmouth have taken an interesting approach to communicating with non-English speaking shoppers. As part of an initiative by Plymouth Against Retail Crime (Parc),  translation packs are being given to large stores, with some going to police patrol cars used around the city centre too.
The packs contain 13 cards, each carrying phrases […]

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Milkman shows ultimate Cross-Cultural Customer Service

“Cemcho bhai, harisani, ano chokra kabar?”
That is Gujarati for: “Hello brother, how are you? Any news about your son?”
Not too unusual as the start of a conversation in the heart of the Asian community in Blackburn, apart from the fact that the words are being spoken by a 69-year-old white, English-born milkman.
John Mather, aka Jimmy, […]

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Intercultural training materials for migrant workers

On a construction site near the future Olympic village in east London, more than half of the workforce is Asian, about a third Central and Eastern European (including a large contingent of Bulgarians) and about 10% British.
In the canteen Sikhs sit with Sikhs, Lithuanians with Lithuanians and Brits with Brits. Communication is severely limited and […]

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