Its allow individual who are not familiar with the people and communities where they will

work immerse
themselves in these settings. This gives them the opportunity to reflect on their assumptions, attitudes,
and the knowledge base of their profession and to gain cultural competence. Immersion programs relocate
individuals into an unfamiliar environment for a period of time for the purpose of providing meaningful
learning opportunities. For maximum effect, the provider must be receptive to the social, cultural and/or
political circumstances into which they have been placed.

Pessar, MD, professor emerita of psychiatry, says the community immersion program is one way of
teaching students
that developing trust with their patients "requires some understanding of the social, economic,
psychological and
cultural issues" faced by patients.
The NSTP trainees are expected to initiate community-based interventions in the form of projects and
activities
meant to address the multi-faceted issues and concerns of the people in the area of service.

Is a strategy that goes beyond acquainting us with community concerns but make possible our
participation
in their solution.

Is an essential strategy in community organizing work that entails understanding of the different
community
concerns, process, dynamics and lifestyle through exposure and engaging different activities;

Is advised as a strategy in molding students just so that they may be socially aware and responsible to
their
communities. This manner of transformation is bent on training the youth to become civic consciousness
and
defense prepared individuals.
Objectives of NSTP Community Immersion?
Community immersion allows individuals who are not familiar with the people and communities where
they will
work immerse themselves in these settings. This gives them the opportunity to reflect on their
assumptions,
attitudes, and the knowledge base of their profession and to gain cultural competence.
Immersion programs relocate individuals into an unfamiliar environment for a period of time for the
purpose of
providing meaningful learning opportunities. For maximum effect, the individual must be receptive to the
social,
cultural and/or political circumstances into which they have been placed.
Pessar, MD, professor emerita of psychiatry, says the community immersion program is one way of
teaching students
that developing trust with their patients "requires some understanding of the social, economic,
psychological and
cultural issues" faced by patients.
What is Community?
A common definition of community emerged as a group of people with diverse characteristics who are
linked by
social ties, share common perspectives, and engage in joint action in geographical locations or settings.
What are the elements of Community Immersion?
WHAT ARE THE ELEMENTS OF COMMUNITY?

The important elements of Community are:

1. Demographics
oCharacteristics of population;
oTells about the movement of population in the community that you will serve;
2. History
oAllows you to identify certain patterns of change and people's way of adapting these
changes that can be useful in plotting your activities.
oEvents of the past that contributed to the development of the community.
3. Understanding the economy, culture and community structures
oAn economy consists of the economic systems of a country or other area;
the labor, capital, and land resources; and the manufacturing, production,
trade, distribution, and consumption of goods and services of that area;
oIncome level of the people.
Cultural relativism states that values are defined by local culture as opposed to global ideology.
Cultural relativists argue that human rights were developed by Western countries and are based on
Western morality. They should therefore not be imposed on non-Western societies that have
different histories, cultures and levels of development.

Cultural Relativism is the view that moral or ethical systems, which vary from culture to culture, are
all equally valid and no one system is really “better” than any other. This is based on the idea that
there is no ultimate standard of good or evil, so every judgment about right and wrong is a product of
society. Therefore, any opinion on morality or ethics is subject to the cultural perspective of each
person. Ultimately, this means that no moral or ethical system can be considered the “best,” or
“worst,” and no particular moral or ethical position can actually be considered “right” or “wrong.”

In response, universalists argue that ideals like liberty and security belong to all of us. They are
critical of cultural relativist arguments, which they see as an attempt to justify oppression of
minorities or defend harmful cultural practices.

Cultural relativism has been criticized as a means for nations to pick and choose which rights they
are willing to uphold.

SO, there is a tension between human rights as entirely universal and not subject to modifications
due to culture, on the one hand, versus human rights as affected by the cultural demands of specific
contexts, on the other.

This tension (perhaps "collision") between the idea of "universal human rights" as an objective truth,
and the cultural relativism of diverse communities throughout the world brings up all sorts of
complicated arguments about imperialism and colonialism, objective versus subjective truths,
ethnocentrism and xenophobia.
 In universalism, an individual is a social unit, possessing inalienable rights, and driven by the
pursuit of self interest. In the cultural relativist model, a community is the basic social unit.
Concepts such as individualism, freedom of choice, and equality are absent.