| |
|
|
Journal of General Internal Medicine: Studies show importance of language services on disparities, quality of care
In the United States, nearly one in five people speaks a language other than English at home. And, while many can comfortably speak English when needed, experts estimate some 20 million people in America—about one in every 15 people—speak or understand little, if any English. This means health care providers are increasingly facing the challenge of how to communicate efficiently and effectively with patients who have limited English proficiency (LEP).
New studies published in a special Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-supported supplement to the Journal of General Internal Medicine examine the consequences of language barriers for patients who speak little, if any, English, and the impact of the absence of language services in health care settings.
This collection of articles on efforts to improve the care of Americans with LEP includes several studies that expose the disparities in quality of care resulting when patients and providers do not speak the same language. Using national data, these studies demonstrate the degree to which language barriers interfere with the provision of basic health services—approximately one-third (35%) of Hispanics who speak little English receive all of the health care services for which they are eligible.
Featured in the Journal of General Internal Medicine supplement:
-
Improving Quality of US Health Care Hinges on Improving Language Services, Risa Lavizzo- Mouery, MD, MBA, President and CEO, RWJF
-
Measuring and Improving the Quality of Hospital Language Services, Marsha Regenstein, PhD, Director, Speaking Together
-
Patient Satisfaction with Different Interpreting Methods: A Randomized Controlled Trial, Francesca Gany (Bellevue Hospital Center’s Speaking Together team)
Access the full text of this supplement |
|
|
Printer Friendly Version
E-mail a Page
