PHYSICIANS AND IMMIGRANT PATIENTS - CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION

OBJECTIVE To formulate recommendations for facilitating communication and helping prevent misunderstandings during cross-cultural patient-ph ysician interactions. DESIGN Qualitative study using content and seman tic analyses of information supplied in focus groups. SETTING All fami ly physician respondents were associated with departments of family me dicine at two urban hospitals and had expressed interest in this study ; all immigrant patients were recruited from the English-as-a-Second-L anguage program at a community agency. PARTICIPANTS Thirteen immigrant patients, distributed in two groups (one of seven women and one man a nd one of three men and two women), and five family physicians (two wo men and three men). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Responses to prepared questi ons asked in focus groups. RESULTS Family physicians thought that unde rstanding patients' cultures better would improve quality of care. Pat ients did not always understand why their physicians asked questions a bout their culture, sometimes finding these questions irrelevant or in trusive. Comments were used to formulate recommendations for patient-p hysician interactions. CONCLUSIONS Physicians and patients are aware o f culture as a factor in their relationships but differ on its importa nce to quality of care.