Cultural competence is a crucial requirement of nursing to promote caring for patients with diverse backgrounds. The purpose of this study was to develop a cultural competence course and to evaluate the effects of the course on undergraduate nursing students in Vietnam. A concurrent triangulation mixed-methods study was adopted using quantitative and qualitative data sources. Sixty-six nursing students were recruited for the following groups: cultural competence course with field experience (n = 22), stand-alone cultural competence course (n = 22), and a control group (n = 22). The findings indicated that significant group by time interactions in total cultural competence score (F = 66.73, p < 0.001) were found. Participants' perceptions reflected on three categories: (a) journey to cultural competence, (b) satisfaction of cultural competence course, and (c) suggestions for improvements. No statistically significant differences between the two experimental groups were revealed, but "obtaining cultural experiences" and "expanding understanding of cultural competence through field experience" were immersed from participants having field experience. It is vital to expand cultural competency education into nursing curricula to enhance nursing students' perspective of culturally competent care.
Keywords: Vietnam; cultural competence; nursing education; nursing student.