Cultural diversity in Glasgow, part 1: are we meeting the challenge?

This article is in two parts. Part 1 presents a survey of occupational therapists working in Glasgow. Ninety-four respondents returned self-completion questionnaires. Their level of contact, language and information services, self-rated awareness, actual knowledge of cultural factors and attitudes towards the service provision to clients of Indian subcontinent origins (ISO) were investigated. The respondents tended to self-rate their awareness as quite low. Knowledge about cultural factors was influenced more by the therapist's age and source of knowledge than by whether he or she worked in an area with a large ISO community. Part 2 will present their perception of the adequacy of the service and attitudes towards multicultural awareness education.