General Practitioners' experiences of asthma management in culturally and linguistically diverse populations

The purpose of this study was to explore General Practitioners' experiences and perspectives about asthma management of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) people with asthma, particularly with reference to Arabic-speaking patients with low English proficiency (LEP).

Semi-structured interviews guided by an interview protocol were conducted with general practitioners who deal with CALD patients with asthma. Participants were recruited from medical practices in Melbourne, Australia. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim, followed by an inductive thematic analysis.

Data saturation was achieved after 21 interviews. Interviews lasted on average 30 minutes. Thematic analyses of the interview transcripts highlighted five key emergent themes: self-autonomy, language issues, accessibility and engagement, health literacy, and cultural/beliefs issues. Many participants highlighted that CALD patients do not self-manage their asthma. Miscommunication was mentioned by some participants as stemming from language barriers. Patients' difficulty in engagement with the health system, lower accessibility to health care, social isolation, and non-acclimatization were other issues participants highlighted as problems in providing effective asthma care to CALD patients. Participants reported finding it more difficult to treat CALD patients with asthma compared to local patients.

General practitioners perceived that treating culturally and linguistically diverse patients with asthma is difficult and many key barriers were observed to affect treatment. Cultural competence training for health professionals, as well as improving asthma and health system awareness in CALD patients with asthma and their carers, are key interventions that may address asthma management gaps in CALD patients.