Addressing Language and Cultural Barriers to Health Care: the Development of a Health Resource Guide for the Latino Community in Metro Atlanta Open Access

Abstract

Background: Results from the 2010 U.S. Census indicate that Metropolitan Atlanta has seen tremendous growth in the Latino population in recent years, yet there is a severe shortage of bilingual, bicultural healthcare providers, as well as trained interpreters. Language creates a significant barrier to accessing care and receiving quality care. A health resource guide for Atlanta's Latino population may help reduce that barrier by connecting Spanish-speaking patients to Spanish-speaking providers or interpreter services.

Goal: The goal of this project is to create a sustainable database of information on healthcare facilities in the Metro Atlanta area that utilize Spanish-speaking providers or interpreter services, and to develop a health resource guide for the Latino community using information from the database.

Methodology: Approximately 567 medical and dental facilities within Metro Atlanta (ITP) were contacted by phone to take a questionnaire regarding the types of services offered, with particular attention to the level of Spanish-speaking services. Approximately 186 facilities answered the questionnaire. The information was stored in a Microsoft Access database, which was then used to generate a Health Resource Guide. The guide was evaluated and revised after focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with local community leaders.

Results: Both an electronic and hard copy version of the health resource guide, Guía de Servicios de Salud para la Comunidad Latina, have been created (Appendix B). The hard copy has been distributed to local Latino community organizations, such as the Latin American Association (LAA) and the Hispanic Health Coalition of Georgia (HHCGA). Additionally, the electronic version currently resides on the HHCGA's webpage and can be obtained through a basic Google search.

Conclusion: The Guía de Servicios de Salud para la Comunidad Latina connects Spanish-speaking patients to Spanish-speaking services, which will help improve patient-provider communication and ultimately improve patient satisfaction and quality of care. The methodology and product developed by this research team can be emulated by other organizations seeking to create similar health resource guides for their communities.

Table of Contents

Abstract....................................................................................................iv

Acknowledgements.....................................................................................vi

Table of Contents.......................................................................................vii

List of Figures............................................................................................viii

Review of the Literature...............................................................................1

Methodology..............................................................................................14

Results. .................................................................................................... 21

Discussion ................................................................................................. 23

Public Health Implications ............................................................................ 30

Appendix A: Health Resource Guide Questionnaire ............................................ 32

Appendix B: Guía de Servicios de Salud para la Comunidad Latina.......................37

Reference .................................................................................................. 38

About this Master's Thesis

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School	Rollins School of Public Health
Department	Hubert Department of Global Health
Degree	MPH
Submission	Master's Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Health Sciences, Public Health
Keyword	Latino Spanish Resource Guide Interpreters
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Leon, Juan, Emory University
Partnering Agencies	Emory University schools, faculty or affiliated programs Community-based non-profit organization (e.g., AID Atlanta)

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