Patient-satisfaction in an outpatient vein surgery office: A comparison of English- and Spanish-speaking patients

In spite of an increasing Latino population and accompanying rise in demand for health care, not much is known about patient-satisfaction in Spanish-speaking patients and how to improve patient-satisfaction when using interpreters. We sought to compare patient-satisfaction with vein surgery office visits between English-speaking and Spanish-speaking patients.

Directly before and after the office visit, 126 patients completed a socio-demographic survey, a five-point ordinal rating survey of physician and interpreter satisfaction with the encounter. Measures were satisfaction with the provider's friendliness, respectfulness, concern, ability to make the patient comfortable, and time spent for the exam.

When the provider was fluent in the language that the patient spoke, patients ( M = 4.954, SD = 0.21) were significantly more satisfied with their visit at VVHC than patients who required an interpreter ( M = 4.762, SD = 0.71), z = 2.230, p = 0.012. Spanish speaking patients were more likely to be satisfied with the visit when they felt their interpreter was friendly ( n = 58, p = 0.049). There was no difference found with regard to the provider being thoughtful and comforting.

Spanish-speaking patients are less satisfied with the care provided in a vein surgery office. Patients who communicated through an interpreter were less satisfied with the patient-provider relationship. In light of the growing diversity of the US population and the fact that patient-satisfaction is increasingly tied to reimbursement, additional research might identify potential areas of improvement for the surgeon, interpreter, and patient perspectives.