“Does This Doctor Speak My Language?” Improving the Characterization of Physician Non‐English Language Skills

Health Services Research - Tập 47 Số 1pt2 - Trang 556-569 - 2012
Lisa C. Diamond1, Harold S. Luft2, Sukyung Chung2, Elizabeth A. Jacobs3
1Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Department of Medicine Memorial Sloan‐Kettering Cancer Center Immigrant Health and Cancer Disparities Service 641 Lexington Ave 7th Fl New York NY 10022
2Palo Alto Medical Foundation Research Institute, Palo Alto, CA
3Department of Medicine & Health Innovation Program University of Wisconsin‐Madison Madison WI

Tóm tắt

ObjectiveTo describe the initial impact of an organizational policy change on measurement of physician non‐English language proficiency.Study SettingMultispecialty health care organization in the San Francisco Bay Area.Study Design/Data CollectionIn response to preliminary findings suggesting that the organization's nonvalidated and undefined three‐category tool for physician self‐report of non‐English language proficiency levels was likely inadequate, the organization asked physicians to rate their non‐English language proficiency levels using an adapted Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) scale, a validated measure with five rating levels and descriptors. We then compared the self‐reported language proficiency on the original scale and the ILR for those physicians who completed both and used regression analysis to investigate physician characteristics potentially associated with a change in score on the old versus ILR scales.Principal FindingsSix months after the ILR scale was implemented throughout the organization, 75 percent (258/342) of physicians had updated their language proficiency ratings. Among clinicians who had previously rated themselves in the “Medical/Conversational” category, there were substantial variations in scores using the ILR scale. Physicians who spoke two or more non‐English languages were significantly more likely to lower their self‐reported proficiency when updating from the old scale to the ILR scale.ConclusionsThe organization was willing to adopt a relatively straightforward change in how data were collected and presented to patients based on the face validity of initial findings. This organizational policy change appeared to improve how self‐reported physician language proficiency was characterized.

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Health Services Research

Tập 47 Số 1pt2

556-569

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