This section is designed to help health care professionals better understand and more effectively respond to the growing needs of Central Asians in the United States. We hope that this information will help health service planners, administrators, educators, and providers to facilitate greater access to, and utilization of, culturally competent health services by Central Asian clients. We hope that the material contained in this section will stimulate further thought and action to improve health care for the diverse cultural groups that comprise Central Asians.

It may be useful to you as a medical practitioner to have basic information about Central Asian cultural beliefs and practices. We have provided some basic cultural information with that goal in view. At the same time, it is vital to recognize that every patient is an individual. Stereotyping a patient can lead to misconceptions about the individual seeking your care. We caution you to keep this important caveat in mind.

This section includes:

• Getting to Know Central Asian Culture
• Strengths and Protective Factors in Central-Asian Families and Communities
• Challenges to Health and Well-Being of Central-Asian Families and Communities
• Principles for Culturally Competent Health Services for Central-Asian Families and Communities
• References
• Links