Structural Competency in Conflict Zones: Challenging Depoliticization in Israel

Structural competency is the trained ability to discern and acknowledge how health care outcomes are shaped by larger political, social, economic, policy, and legal forces and structures. Although structural competency has become an increasingly known framework for training and teaching, especially in the United States, it has usually not been used in nursing and nursing education. Moreover, very little is known about how to implement structural competency programs in conflict zones. Due to depoliticization that often prevails in both the higher education system and the health care system, the political conflict and the structural violence that significantly impact people’s health are rarely discussed in these systems. This article examines the potential contribution of structural competency training programs for nurses and nursing students in conflict areas by analyzing a program that has emphasized the impact of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict on the health of Jerusalem’s Palestinian residents. The article explains how this program has challenged the denial and silencing of conflict-related sociopolitical issues. At the same time, this program has created heated disagreements and friction. We suggest that structural competency training programs that are adapted to the political context in question may help nurses become organic intellectual leaders and agents of social change for those whose voices are not heard.