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It may be useful to you as a medical practitioner to have basic information on the culture, health strengths, and health challenges of people from some of the regions and groups of the world. In this section, we have provided basic information about some regions and groups with that goal in view. At the same time, it is vital to recognize that every patient is an individual with a unique personal history, belief system, communication style and health status. Stereotyping a patient can lead to misconceptions about the individual seeking your care. We caution you to keep this important caveat in mind.

Please note that the categories of regions and groups included here are somewhat arbitrary. In many cases, they do not accurately reflect the rich variety of cultures within those regions or groups. We appreciate your understanding and tolerance for our need to use categories to organize the material. If you feel that we have misrepresented a region or group in any way, please let us know. We will take your comments and suggestions into consideration as we improve and periodically update this website.

You will find information about people from various regions and groups under several headings:

• Understanding Minority, Immigrant, and Refugee Populations
• Common Health Problems in Selected Minority, Ethnic, and Cultural Groups
• Common Beliefs and Practices
• An Expanded Look at Some Cultural Groups
• Book Excerpts