Minimizing barriers

Developing culturally-congruent training programs for the dairy workforce

Abstract

While veterinarians are increasingly seen by dairy producers as training providers for their diverse workforce, veterinary medicine curricula offers limited opportunities for practitioners to develop into effective communicators, especially when having to engage with multicultural groups. Conducting training on a dairy farm to change behaviors and to improve animal health and performance goes beyond a presentation translated by a bilingual dairy employee. While language barriers should be addressed, veterinarians should also be aware of cultural factors that may affect communication and the success of the training efforts. This article and associated presentation propose best practices for the facilitation of culturally-congruent training programs to improve dairy worker performance.