The interview guide provides structure to your data collection by helping you to collect information in a systematic and thorough manner.  However, not all of the questions may be  appropriate for a particular client.  The order of questions and the words you use should fit the situation and the setting.  Use the guide as a guide, rather than as a structured interview questionnaire.  Listen to what your client is telling you and allow your own questions to arise from the interview as it progresses.

Cultural Affiliation
I am interested in learning more about your cultural background and understanding your health care needs.  What is your ethnic culture?  How long have you and your family been residents of the U.S.?  Where did you live before coming here?  Where were you born?  How much do you identify with your cultural group?

Health Care Beliefs and Practices
How do you know if someone else is healthy?
 How do you know when you are healthy?
 What do you and others do to stay healthy?
 What types of food do you eat?
 How is it cooked?
 When are your meals scheduled?
 Who eats together?
 What have you eaten in the past day?
 How do you celebrate special events (i.e. birth, maturity, marriage, aging, death)?
 Who cares for the people going through these processes?

Illness Beliefs and Customs
What is it that causes a person to become ill?
When someone is ill, what does he or she do to get better?
Whom does he or she go to for help? When?
How does a person decide on the need to see an nurse or doctor?  Go to a hospital?

Interpersonal Relations
In your culture, how do people express feelings and emotions about other?
 What does “care” mean to you?
Please think about a small gathering of people of your culture:
Could you describe how they are communicating with each other?
 Are they all talking at once or in turn?
 Are voices loud or soft?
 Are there periods of silence?
 How close do people get to each other?  Do they touch?
 What do they do with their hand s as they talk?
 Are conversations about things or activities?  Are they about feelings?
 What topics are generally not talked about with strangers?  Care providers?
 How do men and women meet members outside the family they grew up in?
 How do they find someone to marry?  Who is acceptable?
 Are there any special ceremonies or problems regarding sexuality?
How is modesty expressed by men and women?
Are there any restrictions related to sexuality or exposure of body parts or certain types of surgery (e.g. amputations, vasectomy, hysterectomy, organ transplants)?
Are there culturally defined expectations about male-female relationships?
How do you define a family?
 Are there specific duties for men?  For women?  For children?
Who cares for children?  Who disciplines them?  How is that done?
What is the cultural perception of aging?  How are older people treated in your culture?

Spiritual Practices
What is religious affiliation?  How are your beliefs and practices different from others in your cultural group?
What are the duties of men and women in your religion and place of worship?
What religious beliefs and practices are a part of your everyday life?
When someone dies, what customs does your religion follow?
 What do you believe happens to that person after death?
 What is the most appropriate way for people to express their feelings to the family      of the dead person?
 Are there restrictions against discussion of dead relatives or fears related to the      unknown?
Is anything different when a child dies, rather than an adult?

Worldview and Other Social Structures
What part do you play in the world around you?  Why is it important that you are here?
What is the most important aspect of your life?
What languages do you understand? speak? read?
Which one did you speak in your home when you were growing up?
If you or a relative needed an interpreter to communicate with a health care provider, who would you want to interpret for you (family member, friend, professional interpreter, another health care provider, or ... )?
What types of jobs have you held?  Other members of your family?  How have finances influenced your life?
Describe the educational experiences you have had.  Other family members?
 What educational plans do you have for your children?
There is a lot of electrical equipment used in this country...
 How does it compare to where you lived before?
 How has it influenced your life here?
What have you found to be most disturbing about living here?
What have you found most helpful about living here?
 
   Adapted from:  Rosenbaum, J. (1991).  A cultural assessment guide.  Canadian Nurse, 87(4), 32-22 & Andrews, M.M. (1997).  cultural diversity and community health nursing.  In J.M. Swanson & M.A. Nies (Eds.), Community Health Nursing (pp. 464-467).  Philadelphia:  W. B. Saunders.