Dr. Sandy Hunter, associate professor of emergency medical care at Eastern Kentucky University, served as a member of the National Project Advisory Committee, which guided and assisted with creating the curriculum for the latest cultural competency e-learning program produced by the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services’s Office of Minority Health.

“Cultural Competency Curriculum for Disaster Preparedness and Crisis Response” is a free online program designed to increase the cultural competency of members of the disaster response community in order to improve their ability to help minorities and persons with limited English proficiency before, during and after a disaster.

A wide variety of professionals, including paramedics, EMTs, firefighters, homeland security personnel, counselors and law enforcement officers, will be able to use this program for approved continuing education credits to renew their respective licenses.

“Learning how to provide culturally sensitive care to a diverse population of patients is a fundamental responsibility for first responders,” Hunter said. “This engaging case-based interactive program combines relevant information and effective strategies to improve the connections between emergency personnel and patients before, during and after a disaster. It is an invaluable resource for disaster response clinicians and educators alike as we strive to improve our cultural competency.”

In addition to the latest offering, OMH offers a suite of cultural competency programs available at www.ThinkCulturalHealth.org, including “A Physician’s Practical Guide to Culturally Competent Care” and “Culturally Competent Nursing Care: A Cornerstone of Caring.” To date, OMH has issued more than 155,000 cultural competency continuing education credits to physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, social workers, and other health care professionals.

Hunter earned his undergraduate degree in emergency medical care from Western Carolina University in 1984, a master’s degree in health education from EKU in 1998 and a Ph.D. in educational psychology from University of Kentucky in 2005. He has written extensively on a wide variety of topics, including diversity, self-efficacy, hematology and the effect of culture on learning.