How to create a culturally competent practice

Nearly one in five U.S. residents speaks a language other than English at home, with 23 million of them being defined as having limited English proficiency (LEP). When it comes to LEP patients and healthcare, dangerous instances of miscommunication are not rare. As previously reported in FierceHealthcare, a staggering 90 percent of clinicians say language barriers have compromised care in LEP patients, and 86 percent said cultural barriers compromised care.

Fortunately, there are ways you can improve patients' safety and satisfaction by making your practice more culturally competent. Consider the following tips from Chiropractic Economics:

• Hire staff members fluent in the languages of your population and that of patients you want to attract. "Speaking the same language as the patient automatically makes them feel more at home," according to Dr. Neil Gajjar, whose staff speaks five different languages.
• Offer to pay course tuition for employees to learn additional languages, plus a raise and/or bonus for getting an A or becoming proficient in the language.
• Train employees to greet patients in their own language
• Ask patients to teach you a few words of their native language
• Invite an expert from a local college or university to present an educational seminar to your practice on the culture, behavior, and beliefs of the ethnic groups to which you provide care

To learn more:
- read the article from Chiropractic Economics

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