Innovative approaches to promote a culturally competent, diverse health care workforce in an institution serving Hispanic students.

The underrepresentation of minorities among health care providers and researchers is often considered one of the contributing factors to health disparities in these populations. Recent demographic shifts and the higher proportion of minorities anticipated among the newly insured under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act make the need for a more diverse and culturally competent health care workforce an urgent national priority.The authors describe current and future strategies that have been developed at the College of Health Sciences and Human Services at the University of Texas-Pan American (an institution with 89% Hispanic students in 2012) to prepare a culturally competent and ethnically diverse health care workforce that can meet the needs of a diverse population, especially in the college's own community. The college graduates approximately 650 students annually for careers in nursing, physician assistant studies, occupational therapy, pharmacy, rehabilitation services, clinical laboratory sciences, dietetics, and social work. The college's approach centers on enriching student education with research, service, and community-based experiences within a social-determinants-of-health framework. The approach is promoted through an interdisciplinary health disparities research center, multiple venues for community-based service learning, and an innovative approach to improve cultural and linguistic competence. Although the different components of the college's approach are at different developmental stages and will benefit from more formal evaluations, the college's overall vision has several strengths that promise to serve as a model for future academic health initiatives.

Working with Hispanic women who are deaf: recommendations from the literature.

The authors used the hermeneutics approach within social cognitive career theory to explore employment trends and issues over the past 20 years relevant to Hispanic women who are deaf. Barriers to employment were discovered including discrepancies due to gender, race/ethnicity, and severity of hearing loss. Recommendations for policymakers and professionals suggest a need for research that addresses the unique experiences of Hispanic women who are deaf within vocational rehabilitation, the use of social cognitive career theory as it relates to career development and choices, and an increase in education and training to better prepare vocational rehabilitation counselors to work with individuals from multiple minority backgrounds. While information about Hispanic women who are deaf is limited, this review provides a better understanding of Hispanic deaf women and encourages expansion of knowledge in practice and research for professionals working with this unique population.

Psychosocial variables related to the adoption of video relay services among deaf or hard-of-hearing employees at the Texas School for the Deaf.

Assistive technology (AT) can help individuals with disabilities address a range of barriers and increase community and work participation, yet many devices are abandoned soon after acquisition. Video Relay Service (VRS) is a new communication technology available to people who are deaf or hard of hearing, but little is known about VRS adoption and use by intended consumers. Previous research suggests that psychosocial factors may have significant impact on adoption and use of AT, thus a nonexperimental research design was used to investigate the impact of psychosocial and demographic variables on adoption of VRS by deaf or hard-of-hearing adults. Participating employees of the Texas School for the Deaf completed a demographic based on Rogers's characteristics of adopters of innovations, along with the Psychosocial Impact of Assistive Device Scale (PIADS), a 26-item self-report of psychosocial factors related to independence, well-being, and quality of life. Multiple Discriminant Analysis indicated that variables of Competence, Adaptability, and Self-Esteem were predictive of VRS adoption. Of demographic variables, only Training was highly correlated to Competence and Adaptability. Possible limitations include novelty effect and transferability. Recommendations for future research are included.