Quality of Care and Communication With Limited English Proficiency (LEP) Obstetric Patients [37J

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Hospital guidelines and standards recommend the routine use of professional interpreters for patients with Limited English Proficiency (LEP). There is no preexisting data on LEP obstetrics patients and their communications with physicians and nurses. Our objective was to review English LEP patients’ communication with physicians and nurses during their delivery hospitalization, including the use of interpreters and language proficient providers, as well as its association with patient satisfaction. METHODS: Cross-sectional study with in-person survey methodology and retrospective chart review of patients admitted to our postpartum service after delivery at our institution. IRB exempt. RESULTS: 148 postpartum patients were screened. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 20 patients participated in the survey. 70% of these patients were admitted by non-language proficient provider. Of these, only 36% documented use of interpreter during admission. 2 of the 3 patients who underwent cesarean section reported that the reason for cesarean was explained to them in English without the use of interpreter. Despite this, there was reported 100% satisfaction with overall physician care, physician communication with respect to medical condition, and physician respect for culture and language. CONCLUSION: We hypothesized that the rate of use of interpreters and language-proficient providers would be poor, and this proved to be correct in our internal review. The high reported rates of patient satisfaction with both physician and nursing care, communication, and perception of respect for culture and language was a seemingly discordant finding that warrants further exploration. Patient satisfaction drivers may be somewhat different for obstetric populations. This warrants further investigation.