Transcultural therapy. 1: Mental health and learning disabilities.

In this article, the first of two parts, the issues surrounding healthcare provision are discussed in the context of the UK as a multicultural society. Concerns relating to nurse education and training are identified in regard to the implications for practice surrounding diagnosis across cultures, classification of illness, and the status and influence of psychological assessments within the field of mental health and learning disability. Finally, the concept of empowerment is critically reviewed, emphasizing that service providers need to collaborate with communities. Community mental health and learning disability nurses are required to make dynamic alliances with communities, through the individual, and so redirect the power relationship to the community and subsequently respond to the demands for cultural diversity sensitively from within healthcare provision and services.