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Portland, Maine

UNE's Jan Froehlich publishes book on race and culture in health and social care

Jan
Jan Froehlich, M.S., O.T.R./L.

As the United States experienced a long-overdue racial reckoning during the summer of 2020 — with Americans from all walks of life gathering en masse to protest systemic racism — Jan Froehlich, M.S., O.T.R./L., associate professor of occupational therapy, was working with co-author June Thornton-Marsh and their editors at Routledge to put the finishing touches on a new book aiming to help practitioners and aspiring practitioners develop the essential skills for racially and culturally effective communication in health and social care.

Froehlich and Thornton-Marsh’s “Transforming Racial and Cultural Lines in Health and Social Care: Listening, Loving, and Lifting Spirits When You Can” draws from their wealth of experience in the field and long-time colleagueship.

The book is divided into four sections that offer perspective on developing such essential skills such as listening attentively and compassionately to others’ life narratives, aligning with and responding to others’ emotions, and finding humor in ourselves as well as others. The book’s final section includes interviews from medical, health, and social care practitioners discussing examples of how they use racially and culturally effective communication to transform the care they provide and create better health outcomes for their patients.

Ultimately, the book makes the case that improved communication results in a better experience for patients and practitioners alike.  

According to Dean of the Westbrook College of Health Professions (WCHP) and interim provost, Karen Pardue, Ph.D., M.S., RN, CNE, ANEF, a number of programs in the WCHP are currently previewing the book for integration into curricula and adoption as a contemporary learning resource.

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.