College of Humanities & Behavioral Sciences

Minor in Religious Diversity for Care Professions

Overview

The online Minor in Religious Diversity for Care Professions (RDCP) prepares future healthcare workers with cultural competence in religious diversity. Through a low-credit program of five online courses, the RDCP minor can supplement any of the numerous health-related major programs offered at Radford University and Radford University Carilion, and provides all Highlanders the opportunity to apply cultural knowledge about religions in practical professional settings. View requirements for this minor in the Catalog.

NOTE: Before Fall 2023, this minor was named the Religious-Cultural Literacy for Healthcare Professions Minor.

This program fulfills the REAL Curriculum "E" area in Humanistic or Artistic Expression.

Why Study Religious Diversity for Care Professions?

Religion matters for healthcare and the various caring professions, for patients, clients, and providers alike. Habits and perceptions of well-being, understadnings of the body, and cultural norms about illness and healing all are deeply impacted by religion. This makes literacy about religion and health a distinct component of cultural competence and a key knowledge area for healthcare professionals and across the care professions.

However, clinical workplace trainings typically give little attention to religious factors, focusing instead on factors of racial perception, ethnicity, physical ability, and gender and sexuality. At most, healthcare systems currently educate their employees with checklists of religion-specific guidelines for provider-patient interactions. This approach provides little depth of cultural understanding of religion and worldview to improve patient experiences and care delivery. True cultural competence needs to account for religious diversity.

Radford University's minor in Religious Diversity for Care Professions addresses the knowledge-and-skill gap concerning religious differences by focusing on the healthcare sector in multiple religious, social, and cultural contexts. Through excellent educational experiences about religious diversity and healthcare, the RDCP minor will improve your cultural competence as you prepare to enter the healthcare workforce. As a graduate of this program, you will begin your healthcare career with an enhanced understanding of religion's role in your patients' experiences and expectations of care, in your own experiences and expectations, and in religion's influence on the healthcare system overall.

What Will You Learn?

The RDCP minor educates future and current healthcare professionals in four key areas:

foundational information about religion and understandings of health;
the relevance of religious information to healthcare and medicine;
methods for interacting with diverse religious populations in clinical and administrative settings; and
critical reflection on religion’s role in the organization, delivery, and management of healthcare.

To learn more about the RDCP minor, get in touch with our department chair or visit us in Hemphill Hall 4202.

Curriculum

The minor in Religious Diversity for Healthcare Professions consists of 15 semester hours of courses as outlined below:

Foundation course (3 credits)

Choose one of the following:

RELN 112: Religions in Colture and Society, or
RELN 113: World Religions for Healthcare Professionals

Religion-and-Healthcare topics courses (9 credits)

Complete these three courses:

RELN 212: Historical Perspectives on Healthcare and Religion
RELN 213: Healthcare and the American Religious Landscape
RELN 381: Religion and Experiences of Death and Dying

Multidisciplinary Perspectives (3 credits)

Choose one of the following:

HADM 300 - U.S. Healthcare System (GE)
HADM 380 - Healthcare Economics and Policy
HIST 301 - History of Healthcare (GL) (WI)
HSCI 399 - Special Topics in Health Sciences
PBHL 350 - Principles of Public Health
PBHL 382 - Public Health Ethics, Policy and Law
PHIL 215 - Healthcare Ethics (GE)
PHIL 430 - Advanced Healthcare Ethics
RELN 490 - Religious Studies Internship
SOCY 341 - Sociology of Health and Medicine
SOCY 342 - Racial Disparities in Healthcare

Faculty

Our religious studies faculty come from diverse backgrounds, have diverse interestes, and are internationally recognized in their areas of specialization.

Dr. Geoffrey Pollick is an expert on American religion and culture.
Dr. Eric Rothgery's expertise focuses on Hinduism and Islam in India, specifically addressing healing rituals.
Dr. Paul Thomas is an expert on the use and impact of religious texts.

Did you know...?

Philosophy majors are innovators in business. Read more about "The Unexpected Way Philosophy Majors Are Changing The World Of Business".
Mid-career median income for philosophy majors is $81,200.
Philosophy and religious studies majors outperform all other majors on the Law School Admission Test.
Three-quarters of American employers recommend that college students pursue a liberal education--the type of education provided by philosophy and religious studies.
89 percent of employers are looking for more emphasis on efficient oral and written communication skills. Skills that philosophy and religious studies majors consistently demonstrate.
A majority of employers seek applicants with critical thinking and reasoning skills. These are the skills that are the bedrock of the philosophy and religious studies major.
The study of religion and philosophy thrive in a troubled world.