Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2020 Apr 30;35(2):e122.
doi: 10.5001/omj.2020.40. eCollection 2020 Mar.

Implications of Language Barriers for Healthcare: A Systematic Review

Hilal Al Shamsi  1 , Abdullah G Almutairi  2 , Sulaiman Al Mashrafi  3 , Talib Al Kalbani  4
Affiliations
Review

Implications of Language Barriers for Healthcare: A Systematic Review

Hilal Al Shamsi et al. Oman Med J. .

Abstract

Objectives: Language barriers pose challenges in terms of achieving high levels of satisfaction among medical professionals and patients, providing high- quality healthcare and maintaining patient safety. To address these challenges, many larger healthcare institutions offer interpreter services to improve healthcare access, patient satisfaction, and communication. However, these services increase the cost and duration of treatment. The purpose of this review is to investigate the impact of language barriers on healthcare and to suggest solutions to address the challenges.

Methods: We identified published studies on the implications of language barriers in healthcare using two databases: PubMed and Medline. We included 14 studies that met the selection criteria. These studies were conducted in various countries, both developed and developing, though most came from the US. The 14 studies included 300 918 total participants, with participation in each study ranging from 21 to 22 353 people.

Results: We found that language barriers in healthcare lead to miscommunication between the medical professional and patient, reducing both parties' satisfaction and decreasing the quality of healthcare delivery and patient safety. In addition, the review found that interpreter services contribute indirectly to increased cost and the length of treatment visits. One study reported the implementation of online translation tools such as Google Translate and MediBabble in hospitals, which increased the satisfaction of both medical providers and patients (to 92%) and improved the quality of healthcare delivery and patient safety. Language barriers are responsible for reducing the satisfaction of medical providers and patients, as well as the quality of healthcare delivery and patient safety. Many healthcare institutions use interpreter services that increase the cost and length of treatment visits.

Conclusions: The results of our review suggest that implementing online translation tools such as Google Translate and MediBabble may improve the quality of healthcare and the level of satisfaction among both medical providers and patients.

Keywords: Communication Barriers; Limited English Proficiency; Patient Satisfaction; Quality of Health Care.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The process of selecting the included 14 studies in this review.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Slade S, Sergent SR. Language barrier. In: StatPearls [Internet]: StatPearls Publishing; 2018. - PubMed
    1. Bischoff A, Denhaerynck K. What do language barriers cost? An exploratory study among asylum seekers in Switzerland. BMC Health Serv Res 2010. Aug;10(1):248. 10.1186/1472-6963-10-248 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hilfinger Messias DK, McDowell L, Estrada RD. Language interpreting as social justice work: perspectives of formal and informal healthcare interpreters. ANS Adv Nurs Sci 2009. Apr-Jun;32(2):128-143. 10.1097/ANS.0b013e3181a3af97 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Floyd A, Sakellariou D. Healthcare access for refugee women with limited literacy: layers of disadvantage. Int J Equity Health 2017. Nov;16(1):195. 10.1186/s12939-017-0694-8 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Divi C, Koss RG, Schmaltz SP, Loeb JM. Language proficiency and adverse events in US hospitals: a pilot study. Int J Qual Health Care 2007. Apr;19(2):60-67. 10.1093/intqhc/mzl069 - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources