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The Need for More Prehospital Research on Language Barriers: A Narrative Review

INTRODUCTION: Despite evidence from other healthcare settings that language barriers negatively impact patient outcomes, the literature on language barriers in emergency medical services (EMS) has not been previously summarized. The objective of this study is to systematically review existing studie...

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Autor principal: Tate, Ramsey C.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Department of Emergency Medicine, University of California, Irvine School of Medicine 2015
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4703189/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26759662
http://dx.doi.org/10.5811/westjem.2015.8.27621
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author Tate, Ramsey C.
author_facet Tate, Ramsey C.
author_sort Tate, Ramsey C.
collection PubMed
description INTRODUCTION: Despite evidence from other healthcare settings that language barriers negatively impact patient outcomes, the literature on language barriers in emergency medical services (EMS) has not been previously summarized. The objective of this study is to systematically review existing studies of the impact of language barriers on prehospital emergency care and identify opportunities for future research. METHODS: A systematic review with narrative synthesis of publications with populations specific to the prehospital setting and outcome measures specific to language barriers was conducted. A four-prong search strategy of academic databases (PubMed, Academic Search Complete, and Clinical Key) through March 2015, web-based search for gray literature, search of citation lists, and review of key conference proceedings using pre-defined eligibility criteria was used. Language-related outcomes were categorized and reported as community-specific outcomes, EMS provider-specific outcomes, patient-specific outcomes, or health system-specific outcomes. RESULTS: Twenty-two studies met eligibility criteria for review. Ten publications (45%) focused on community-specific outcomes. Language barriers are perceived as a barrier by minority language speaking communities to activating EMS. Eleven publications (50%) reported outcomes specific to EMS providers, with six of these studies focused on EMS dispatch. EMS dispatchers describe less accurate and delayed dispatch of resources when confronted with language discordant callers, as well as limitations in the ability to provide medical direction to callers. There is a paucity of research on EMS treatment and transport decisions, and no studies provided patient-specific or health system-specific outcomes. Key research gaps include identifying the mechanisms by which language barriers impact care, the effect of language barriers on EMS utilization and clinically significant outcomes, and the cost implications of addressing language barriers. CONCLUSION: The existing research on prehospital language barriers is largely exploratory, and substantial gaps in understanding the interaction between language barriers and prehospital care have yet to be addressed. Future research should be focused on clarifying the clinical and cost implications of prehospital language barriers.
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spelling pubmed-47031892016-01-12 The Need for More Prehospital Research on Language Barriers: A Narrative Review Tate, Ramsey C. West J Emerg Med Patient Communication INTRODUCTION: Despite evidence from other healthcare settings that language barriers negatively impact patient outcomes, the literature on language barriers in emergency medical services (EMS) has not been previously summarized. The objective of this study is to systematically review existing studies of the impact of language barriers on prehospital emergency care and identify opportunities for future research. METHODS: A systematic review with narrative synthesis of publications with populations specific to the prehospital setting and outcome measures specific to language barriers was conducted. A four-prong search strategy of academic databases (PubMed, Academic Search Complete, and Clinical Key) through March 2015, web-based search for gray literature, search of citation lists, and review of key conference proceedings using pre-defined eligibility criteria was used. Language-related outcomes were categorized and reported as community-specific outcomes, EMS provider-specific outcomes, patient-specific outcomes, or health system-specific outcomes. RESULTS: Twenty-two studies met eligibility criteria for review. Ten publications (45%) focused on community-specific outcomes. Language barriers are perceived as a barrier by minority language speaking communities to activating EMS. Eleven publications (50%) reported outcomes specific to EMS providers, with six of these studies focused on EMS dispatch. EMS dispatchers describe less accurate and delayed dispatch of resources when confronted with language discordant callers, as well as limitations in the ability to provide medical direction to callers. There is a paucity of research on EMS treatment and transport decisions, and no studies provided patient-specific or health system-specific outcomes. Key research gaps include identifying the mechanisms by which language barriers impact care, the effect of language barriers on EMS utilization and clinically significant outcomes, and the cost implications of addressing language barriers. CONCLUSION: The existing research on prehospital language barriers is largely exploratory, and substantial gaps in understanding the interaction between language barriers and prehospital care have yet to be addressed. Future research should be focused on clarifying the clinical and cost implications of prehospital language barriers. Department of Emergency Medicine, University of California, Irvine School of Medicine 2015-12 2015-12-08 /pmc/articles/PMC4703189/ /pubmed/26759662 http://dx.doi.org/10.5811/westjem.2015.8.27621 Text en Copyright © 2015 Tate. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) License. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
spellingShingle Patient Communication
Tate, Ramsey C.
The Need for More Prehospital Research on Language Barriers: A Narrative Review
title The Need for More Prehospital Research on Language Barriers: A Narrative Review
title_full The Need for More Prehospital Research on Language Barriers: A Narrative Review
title_fullStr The Need for More Prehospital Research on Language Barriers: A Narrative Review
title_full_unstemmed The Need for More Prehospital Research on Language Barriers: A Narrative Review
title_short The Need for More Prehospital Research on Language Barriers: A Narrative Review
title_sort need for more prehospital research on language barriers: a narrative review
topic Patient Communication
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4703189/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26759662
http://dx.doi.org/10.5811/westjem.2015.8.27621
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