As Western Canada's ethnic population increases, health care and social service workers are recognizing the importance of their being more aware of the particular needs of their ethnic patients in order to provide culturally sensitive and effective treatment programs. This handbook describes several recent immigrant groups in western Canada, among them Vietnamese, South and Southeast Asians, Chinese, Japanese, Central Americans, West Indians, and Iranians. It is unique in its approach, as it provides information not only about the health beliefs and practices of these communities but also about the social context of each group. Each chapter describes one particular ethnic group and discusses its attitudes towards such issues as childbirth, mental illness, dental care, hospitalization, and death. Information is also given on the level of health care, the religion, education, and political system in the home country, as well as on the reasons for emigrating and problems of adjusting to life in Canada. The authors, who are themselves members of the communities they describe, work in a variety of health-related fields. The information they provide reflects the kinds of questions professionals ask about these immigrant groups. The final chapter offers specific guidelines for cultural assessment, including strategies for negotiating a plan of care that will be acceptable to both the clinician and the patient. With its wealth of practical information, Cross-Cultural Caring will be particularly useful to those working directly with ethnic patients, such as nurses, social workers, physicians, dentists, and psychologists. It will also provide important information for administrators in health care and social service agencies and will be of interest to those in medical sociology and anthropology.