Aim The purpose of this literature study was to describe nurses’ experiences of encounters with patients from different cultural backgrounds than their own, and to describe the opportunities and barriers that nurses’ face when caring for these patients.
Method Twelve qualitative studies from different countries were included in this literature study, in which researchers interviewed nurses and presented their problems and experiences. Our study was analyzed by using a qualitative approach.
Findings The study revealed four phenomena that nurses face when caring for patients from different cultural backgrounds; the communication with the patient, encounters with family/relatives, nurses’ experiences of working conditions in cultural encounters and cultural nursing knowledge.
Conclusion Nurses felt that communication was the biggest main obstacle in meetings with patients with different cultural backgrounds. Interpreter, colleagues and relatives were seen as opportunities to avoid the obstacles that arise. Family in patients with different cultural background was very important in nursing care of these patients. Nurses saw education as an opportunity to increase their cultural knowledge and believe that access to an interpreter would facilitate health care.