Effect of spoken language on primary care choice refugee health assessment program patients seen at Boston Medical Center

PURPOSE: There are approximately 21.3 million refugees worldwide. Connection to primary care is essential for these patients because of the potential for long-term and complex care that they require. Primary care and continuity of care also leads to better health outcomes. This study examined what e...

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Main Author: Tunstall, Hannah
Language:en_US
Published: 2017
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/2144/23880
id ndltd-bu.edu-oai-open.bu.edu-2144-23880
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spelling ndltd-bu.edu-oai-open.bu.edu-2144-238802019-01-08T15:42:22Z Effect of spoken language on primary care choice refugee health assessment program patients seen at Boston Medical Center Tunstall, Hannah Health sciences Language Refugee Primary care PURPOSE: There are approximately 21.3 million refugees worldwide. Connection to primary care is essential for these patients because of the potential for long-term and complex care that they require. Primary care and continuity of care also leads to better health outcomes. This study examined what effect primary language had on primary care choice by Refugee Health Assessment Program (RHAP) patients seen at Boston Medical Center (BMC) and whether patients who chose non-BMC primary care eventually returned to BMC. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted examining RHAP patients’ primary language, and whether those patients continued care at BMC or sought care elsewhere. RESULTS: Significant results were seen among subjects who identified Chinese, Haitian Creole, Somali, Spanish and Vietnamese as their primary language. Spanish, Chinese, and Vietnamese speakers had greater odds of seeking care outside of BMC. Haitian Creole and Somali speakers had greater odds of seeking care at BMC compared to English speakers. 80% of subjects returned to BMC after seeking care elsewhere. CONCLUSIONS: Primary language does effect choice of primary care provider within the refugee population. Providers should use these results to encourage refugee patients less likely to seek care to connect with a primary care provider. 2017-09-22T18:59:52Z 2017-09-22T18:59:52Z 2017 2017-07-13T19:26:44Z Thesis/Dissertation https://hdl.handle.net/2144/23880 en_US
collection NDLTD
language en_US
sources NDLTD
topic Health sciences
Language
Refugee
Primary care
spellingShingle Health sciences
Language
Refugee
Primary care
Tunstall, Hannah
Effect of spoken language on primary care choice refugee health assessment program patients seen at Boston Medical Center
description PURPOSE: There are approximately 21.3 million refugees worldwide. Connection to primary care is essential for these patients because of the potential for long-term and complex care that they require. Primary care and continuity of care also leads to better health outcomes. This study examined what effect primary language had on primary care choice by Refugee Health Assessment Program (RHAP) patients seen at Boston Medical Center (BMC) and whether patients who chose non-BMC primary care eventually returned to BMC. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted examining RHAP patients’ primary language, and whether those patients continued care at BMC or sought care elsewhere. RESULTS: Significant results were seen among subjects who identified Chinese, Haitian Creole, Somali, Spanish and Vietnamese as their primary language. Spanish, Chinese, and Vietnamese speakers had greater odds of seeking care outside of BMC. Haitian Creole and Somali speakers had greater odds of seeking care at BMC compared to English speakers. 80% of subjects returned to BMC after seeking care elsewhere. CONCLUSIONS: Primary language does effect choice of primary care provider within the refugee population. Providers should use these results to encourage refugee patients less likely to seek care to connect with a primary care provider.
author Tunstall, Hannah
author_facet Tunstall, Hannah
author_sort Tunstall, Hannah
title Effect of spoken language on primary care choice refugee health assessment program patients seen at Boston Medical Center
title_short Effect of spoken language on primary care choice refugee health assessment program patients seen at Boston Medical Center
title_full Effect of spoken language on primary care choice refugee health assessment program patients seen at Boston Medical Center
title_fullStr Effect of spoken language on primary care choice refugee health assessment program patients seen at Boston Medical Center
title_full_unstemmed Effect of spoken language on primary care choice refugee health assessment program patients seen at Boston Medical Center
title_sort effect of spoken language on primary care choice refugee health assessment program patients seen at boston medical center
publishDate 2017
url https://hdl.handle.net/2144/23880
work_keys_str_mv AT tunstallhannah effectofspokenlanguageonprimarycarechoicerefugeehealthassessmentprogrampatientsseenatbostonmedicalcenter
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