Evaluation of the perception of cultural competency assessment instrument for allied health students.
BACKGROUND
A growing effort is aimed at reducing health disparities influenced by culturally based misinterpretations between patients and health professionals. There are few validated instruments to assess students' self-efficacy of cultural understandings that are linked to pre and post testing of educational interventions.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the psychometric properties of an instrument that measures perception of self-efficacy with respect to cultural competency in allied health students.


METHODS
The Perception of Cultural Competency Assessment (POCCA) was developed and subsequently evaluated for reliability and validity in a convenience sample of 135 students of allied health programs.


RESULTS
The POCCA demonstrated acceptable internal consistency (a = .92) and 2-week test-retest reliability of (R = .78). Four sub-scales were identified by factor analysis that accounted for 63% of total variance. The subscale a coefficients ranged from .61 to .89, and inter-item correlations varied from (R = .41-53). POCCA total scores following an educational intervention were significantly higher compared to pre-test values (p<.00001).


CONCLUSIONS
While these findings provide support for POCCA, more refinement is warranted. The challenge remains to improve the test-retest reliability and to expand the sample to evaluate its effectiveness in a broader context.
Nichols-English
G J
GJ
Medical College of Georgia, School of Allied Health Sciences, Augusta, GA 30912-0100, USA.
Guion
W K
WK
D000328:Adult; D000488:Allied Health Personnel / Q000193:education*; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D054521:Cultural Competency / Q000193:education*; D004521:Educational Measurement / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D054625:Healthcare Disparities / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010465:Perception; D020377:Self Efficacy