Bridging the language gap: For patients with limited English skills

A new AMA video offers information to doctors on how to communicate with patients who speak a different language.

Editorial. Feb. 13, 2006.

A new patient comes to your office for the first time. You want to do what comes naturally: Talk. Take a history. Find out what's wrong. But in this case, it isn't so simple. The patient doesn't speak English well.

A flurry of questions pop into mind. What products and services are out there to help you communicate? What is the safest choice going to be for your patient? Who's going to pay for it? What are your legal obligations?

This scenario is not at all uncommon, and it's going to become even more frequent.

The United States is becoming more diverse. The U.S. Census reported that more than 21 million people -- about 7% of the population -- have limited English skills. That figure is expected to exceed 28 million people -- 10% of the population -- by 2010. So if they haven't already, doctors need to find out how to handle patients with limited English proficiency.

To help them, the American Medical Association recently released a Web-streaming video program that highlights the issues doctors and patients face when they don't speak the same language. The AMA also has published a free brochure, "The Office Guide to Limited English Proficiency Patient Care." It is available by e-mailing a request (mary.willborn@ama-assn.org).

The free seven-minute video, "Optimal Strategies for Addressing Language Barriers Between Physicians and Patients," is the second installment in a monthly series called "Educating Physicians on Controversies in Health."