SEXUALITY
In the Vietnamese culture, as in the majority of Asian cultures, people do not consider themselves as individuals, but rather as a part of the family that they were born into. Before doing anything, one must think, "What will this mean to my family?" (Miae, 1999). Differing sexual orientation is difficult for Vietnamese to face because being homosexual brings shame upon the family, causing many gays and lesbians to be hesitant about coming out. Many Vietnamese have a tendency to come "semi-out," meaning that they will be openly homosexual with their friends, but not their family members (Miae, 1999). In questioning a gay or lesbian person about his or her sexual activity, the person may not answer important questions that are relevant to his health and to testing for sexually transmitted diseases, especially if a family member is acting as the translator, as is often the case. If the sexual orientation of the patient is known, it would be to the advantage of both the doctor and the patient to find a translator who is not a family member. There are also several support groups that the patient may be referred to such as the Asian & Pacific Islander Lesbians and Gays (http://expage.com/page/aplbn), The Gay Vietnamese Alliance (http://www.gva.org/default.htm), and for more general groups http://www.x-citeweb.com/kgal/groups.htm. On these sites there is also various information pertaining to Aids/HIV as well as other sexually transmitted diseases.
Cultural Diversity
