Language as a Communication Barrier in Medical Care for Hispanic Patients

Language differences between physician and patient can affect the doctor-patient encounter and patient recall. This study addresses differences in the variables of recall and question-asking behavior in the interaction between Hispanic patients seen by bilingual physicians and Hispanic patients seen by monolingual (English-speaking) physicians. The study involved 5I Hispanic patients who were seen at the Internal Medicine Associates (IMA) clinic at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City in June 1989. Patients were observed during their interactions with physicians, and the information gathered was then compared to the information obtained in a personal interview immediately following the encounter. The results demonstrated that Hispanic patients seen by bilingual physicians had better recall and asked more questions than did Hispanic patients seen by monolingual physicians. These findings suggest that when physician and patient communicate in the same language and have similar cultures, the patient understands the information given by the physician better and participates more actively in the interaction. Thus language and cultural awareness have important implications in the utilization of health care services by Hispanics.