Cultural Safety, Trauma-Informed Care, and Professional Boundaries

Vocabulary terms and core concepts covering reflective practice, cultural safety, systemic bias in healthcare, trauma-informed care, and professional boundaries for Personal Support Workers (PSWs).

Reflective Practice

A mandatory competency in Ontario required by the Ministry of Colleges and Universities that supports safe, ethical, and person-centred care through systematic thinking.

L.E.A.R.N. Model (Reflective Process)

An acronym used for reflective practice consisting of Look back, Elaborate, Analyze, Revise, and New Trial/Perspective.

L.E.A.R.N. Model (Therapeutic Communication)

An acronym used for communication consisting of Listen, Explain, Acknowledge, Recommend, and Negotiate.

Cultural Safety

Care that respects identify, culture, beliefs, values, and preferences, where the person receiving care defines what feels safe.

Cultural Humility

Recognizing that we do not know everything about another person's culture while remaining open, respectful, and curious.

Mental Wellness

A state that creates meaning and is expressed through rational behaviour, intuition, and understanding.

Physical Wellness

A state that creates purpose and is expressed through wholeness, way of being, and way of doing.

Emotional Wellness

A state that creates belonging and is expressed through family, community, relationship, and attitude.

Spiritual Wellness

A state that creates hope and is expressed through values, belief, and identity.

Systemic Bias

Patterns in healthcare that create unequal access, treatment, or outcomes, often impacting pain management, communication, and trust.

Brian Sinclair

A 45-year-old Indigenous man who died of a bladder infection in a Winnipeg Health Sciences Centre waiting room in 2008 after waiting 34 hours without treatment.

Two Eyed Seeing Approach

An approach that respects and values both Indigenous knowledge and Western medicine perspectives.

Trauma-Informed Care

An approach acknowledging that trauma (from abuse, violence, or loss) affects how people respond to care, focusing on how they experience healthcare.

Principles of Trauma-Informed Care

The five core pillars: Safety, Trust, Choice, Collaboration, and Empowerment.

The Fix It Trap

The professional tendency to try to solve all problems, whereas sometimes presence is the most helpful response.

Therapeutic Distance

Maintaining a professional role and avoiding over-involvement while remaining caring.

PSW Advocacy Role

Supporting patients by observing, reporting, supporting wishes, and communicating changes.

Roadblocks to Communication

Communication barriers to avoid, including minimizing the problem, offering false reassurance, offering excessive praise, and offering platitudes.

Ethical Practice

Maintaining confidentiality, respecting dignity, following the scope of practice, and reporting concerns.