Competence

A recent meeting of experts to discuss cultural competence and evidence-based practices revealed that:

• We do not know the effectiveness of many services that are delivered because they have not been researched.
• Little research related to evidence-based programs has been conducted with diverse populations.
• Where studies have been done that include different racial, ethnic, or cultural groups, small sample sizes have prevented any conclusions regarding the effectiveness of evidence-based programs for these populations.
• In communities where evidence-based programs have been implemented, there is no discernible pattern of success or failure for those that have higher disenfranchisement or poverty levels when compared to other communities that have lower levels.
• Implementation of evidence-based programs depends on the availability of an adequate infrastructure (e.g., financial and human resources, strategies to promote community organization and readiness, implementation and knowledge transfer strategies, fidelity measurement procedures, support from stakeholders).
• It is imperative that partnerships are developed with specific racial, ethnic, and cultural communities so they can participate fully in the design, implementation, and evaluation of promising and best practices models.
• Further research is required to understand what adaptations and modifications need to occur to improve the implementation of best practices models in diverse communities.
• There is evidence that there are services and programs that are ineffective for the problems they are intended to address and, that persons belonging to specific racial, ethnic, and cultural groups may be disproportionately affected.

(Excerpts from the Consensus Statement on Evidence-Based Programs and Cultural Competence, Tampa, FL, July 2003)