A Pilot Spanish Language Curriculum for Patient-Centered Care
Name: Catherine Rivas
School: Mailman School of Public Health, Class of 2021
Mentor: Silvia Cunto-Amesty, MD, MPH, MSEd
Abstract
Language barriers serve as a significant barrier to quality healthcare services, which overtime may lead to adverse health outcomes among limited English proficient (LEP) populations (1,2,3). Language concordant care has been shown to mitigate many of these language-based disparities in healthcare (4,5,6). The purpose of this study was to evaluate satisfaction and perceptions of communication for patients receiving healthcare services at the Farrell Clinic in Washington Heights, NYC, following the implementation of a Spanish language curriculum among resident providers. We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional survey (n=39) among adult Spanish-speaking patients across a period of five months. Survey questions focused on demographics, self-assessments of language proficiency, patient-provider communication, and patient satisfaction. Descriptive survey analysis was performed using SPSS statistical software. The average age of the sample was 54.74 years and majority female (79.49%). Most of the sample (87.18%) reported their English proficiency as “poor” or “not very good”, with 76.92% relying on interpreters to communicate. While the majority reported efficient communication (94.86%) and satisfaction with the quality of care (100%) regardless of interpreter use, 86.55% reported they felt it was important that their provider spoke Spanish. Patients who completed visits with providers not proficient in Spanish (64.1%) reported greater apprehension surrounding their quality of care. Survey results indicate that LEP patients may feel more comfortable receiving care from a Spanish bilingual provider, which has important implications for medical training. Further research is necessary to understand the specific dynamics of language concordant care interactions in order to improve delivery of patient-centered care.