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Do physicians with self-reported non-English fluency practice in linguistically disadvantaged communities?
Gerardo Moreno1, Kara Odom Walker, Leo S Morales
1Department of Family Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA. gemoreno@mednet.ucla.edu
Journal of General Internal Medicine
|December 2, 2010
Summary
Physicians fluent in Spanish or Asian languages are more likely to practice where these patients live. This language concordance can help reduce healthcare access barriers for limited English proficient (LEP) populations.
Area of Science:
- Health Services Research
- Medical Sociology
- Public Health Policy
Background:
- Language concordance between physicians and patients can reduce healthcare access barriers for limited English proficient (LEP) individuals.
- The geographic distribution of physicians fluent in non-English languages relative to LEP populations is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if physicians' fluency in non-English languages is associated with their practice locations in areas with high concentrations of LEP individuals.
- Investigating the relationship between physician language proficiency and practice location for improved healthcare access.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional cohort study analyzing data from 61,138 California physicians (2001-2007).
- Utilized self-reported physician fluency in Spanish and Asian languages and geocoded practice ZIP codes against demographic data for LEP and linguistically isolated households.
- Employed logistic regression models to assess the association between language fluency and practice location, controlling for demographic and professional factors.
Main Results:
- Physicians fluent in Spanish or Asian languages were significantly more likely to practice in areas with high concentrations of speakers of those languages.
- Physician fluency in Asian languages showed an adjusted odds ratio (AOR) of 1.77 (95% CI: 1.63-1.92) for practicing in high-LEP Asian speaker areas.
- Similar associations were observed for Spanish language fluency (AOR = 1.77; 95% CI: 1.43-1.82), with race-ethnicity also influencing practice location.
Conclusions:
- Physicians with fluency in Spanish or Asian languages tend to practice in geographic areas where these languages are prevalent.
- This finding suggests a potential for improved healthcare access for LEP patients through language-concordant physician placement.
- Physician language proficiency is a key factor in addressing healthcare disparities for diverse linguistic communities.
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