ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses global disparities and our role as culturally safe healthcare providers who are also working toward developing as good global citizens. Drawing on instruments such as the American Nurses Association code of ethics, the chapter analyzes how such instruments can guide our practice as professionals. That the average student in the Western world, particularly in the United States, is unfamiliar with the realities experienced by the majority of the world’s citizens has been taken into account. In an era of globalization, a healthcare provider needs to be prepared for encounters with people of diverse backgrounds and experiences. The culturally safe healthcare provider thus needs to have a deep understanding of where people have been and what they have experienced in their countries of origin. Specifically, issues such as food insecurity, the rise of non-communicable diseases in low-income countries are explored and our role as healthcare providers in being aware of these as we strive to become good global citizens. Based on the author’s experiences leading study abroad programs and interacting with international NGOs in Malawi, considerations for future healthcare providers are discussed, as we strive to become good global citizens with a deeper consciousness of the realities of those living outside our own geographic borders, both locally and globally.
