“Our employees and patients come from so many different backgrounds,” says Patient Experience Coordinator Tonita Brown. “We encourage everyone to learn more about, and celebrate, each other’s cultures.”
That’s why the TUH-Main Campus Office of Patient Experience hosted its annual International Fair on October 30th. Dozens of countries were represented, including Argentina, the Dominican Republic, Italy, Columbia, and India. Employees brought in food and wore traditional outfits representing their heritage.
“Everyone loved the Caribbean food,” Brown shares. “We had curry chicken, jerk chicken, and rice and beans. Abiona Berkeley, MD coordinated our collaboration with students from the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University—they catered Caribbean trays and brought butter chicken!”
“The German food was a hit, and so was the tomato pie and biscotti from Italy, the Columbian guava dessert, and a special dessert from Albania,” adds Susie Akinyi-Okumu, DNP, MPA, BSN, RN, CPXP, AVP of Patient Experience.
A Special Thank You
Akinyi-Okumu and her team worked with the Dietary department to ensure patients and their families could also enjoy the International Fair.
“Patients on a regular diet could choose an international menu, which was available to guests as well,” Akinyi-Okumu says.
“We also included cards that said, ‘Thank You’ in various languages on our patients’ meal trays,” says Brown. “It was a way of letting our patients know we appreciate them and thanking them for trusting us with their care.”
Enhanced Understanding—and Care
The team believes that promoting cultural understanding enhances unity and patient care.
“Temple Health is a melting pot of different cultures, and the more we get to know one another, the better we work together,” Akinyi-Okumu says. “We value each other’s backgrounds—and our patients’—in a way that translates to the bedside.”
“It’s a great way to promote togetherness,” agrees Shamin Mathews, MSW, LSW, Manager of Community Engagement and Volunteer Services. “I love seeing what everyone wants to showcase about their cultures. Our Italian team members had handcrafted 100-year-old art pieces that had been passed down for generations, and they were having music battles and dance sessions with our team members from Puerto Rico, trying to teach each other. It really shows how everyone is welcome at Temple Health.”
