International Journal of Emergency Mental Health and Human Resilience
Open Access

Abstract

Older Oromo women who immigrated to the United States in the early 1990s have undergone several stressful life events including war, famine, acculturation, harsh cold climates, a new language barrier with English, and a variety of lifespan experiences alien from those in their native country, Ethiopia. Coping with these new stress triggers correlates with a high level of depressive symptoms that Oromo people call â�?�?sadness.â�? The purpose of this project is to create and disseminate a transcultural model of nursing practices in a community that aims to alleviate sadness among older Oromo women by promoting and fostering community building through means of healthy life choices in the midst of change. A praxis approach guided by Madeleine Leiningerâ�?�?s theory of culture care diversity and universality was used in reviewing the literature in creating and sustaining the community culture care model.

Biography

Fatuma Kotile is a Nursing College Professor in Minnesota USA and also work at Bethesda Health East Hospital in St Paul MN. Fatuma Kotile has experience and passion in cultural competency in nursing education and health site practices. Her practice model and teaching in cultural competency are based on Lininger ‘s Transcultural Nursing Model. Her goal is to increase diversity within nursing programs and help the program to learn, understand, and accommodate nursing students’ with mental health issues. She also assists her Oromo community from East Africa to confront the reality of mental health through workshops and outreach activities. The workshop aim is to increase understanding of the meaning and expression of culture care for older Oromo women living in the United States. This information is a valuable tool for community nurses to understand the background of Oromo cultural health practices and their views about health and illness. In addition, she is also an advocate for healthcare cultural competency when assisting patients who undergo a mental health crisis. Lastly, Fatuma is an enthusiastic learner who strives to understand how members of the community cope and move past their difficulties through healthy dialogue and methodologies.

E-mail: Fkotile.kotile@metrostate.edu