ADVICE MULTICULTURAL CARE
thBridging e divide
Society is growing increasingly diverse and it’s changing the face of UK general practice. But what does this mean for practice managers?
over 7.5 per cent of the total UK population were born abroad. The trend has had an inevitable impact on UK healthcare
C
provision. Indeed, the significance of language and cultural differences between doctor and patient is such that the BMA has identified them as “the most important barriers to healthcare in Britain”. So how does this affect the role of the practice manager? At Woodside Health Centre in the north of Glasgow, the
patient list is diverse and a growing number of patients speak little or no English. During their GP consultations they require a translator and a double slot is allocated to allow extra time for communication. The most common languages requiring translation are Cantonese, Mandarin, Farsi, Arabic, Punjabi, Urdu and Portuguese. Manager Cari Blackwood says the main challenges facing
the practice arise when patients fail to attend appointments and also in booking interpreters. She says: “These patients are booked in for a double
consultation so when they do not attend that wastes a lot of valuable time. Another problem can occur if the reception staff are busy and forget to book an interpreter or when the interpreter or GP is running late. “Things are fine when everything runs to schedule but
that doesn’t always happen in general practice so a patient might be left waiting for an interpreter or the interpreter
12
OMMUNITIES across the country are becoming increasingly multicultural. More than 300 languages are said to be spoken in London schools alone and
has to leave mid-way through a consultation to attend another appointment.”
FLEXIBLE AND FAIR Despite the occasional problem, Cari says running a multi- cultural practice does not require much more work than any other practice. “Flexibility and fairness are crucial,” she says. “We had one instance where a female patient wearing
a full veil objected to being asked to briefly remove it to allow staff to verify her identity when registering her. In the end she agreed to remove her veil briefly during her consultation with the GP. You have to be prepared to work around these issues.” Cari ensures practice leaflets on topics such as contra-
ceptives, smear tests, bowel screening and child vaccinations are available in some of the most commonly spoken languages. The practice also included patients who speak English as a second language in a recent questionnaire exercise to find out their opinion of the services provided, which gave useful feedback. She adds: “It’s important not to treat patients from
other countries differently. Everyone at our practice is treated the same. When registering, for example, all patients have to show their passport and have their ID checked. Managers should make sure practice staff are familiar with the protocols and procedures and that they are applied universally.” Gorbals Health Centre in Glasgow serves a large multi-
cultural community, with a migrant population including patients from Somalia and other African states. Kathleen Diamond and Janette McMillan share managerial duties at the centre as well as at the practice in nearby Croftfoot Road.
They find the task of communicating with non-English speaking patients and arranging interpreters to be a time- consuming one. Kathleen says: “We looked at the work of receptionists
at both sites and found the staff at the Gorbals centre took around three times as long to do simple tasks such as booking appointments. They are having to constantly repeat themselves and ask if the patient needs an inter- preter and then they have to book the interpreter.” The managers have found many of these patients
come from countries affected by war and require treat- ment for complex health problems including mental health issues.
AUTUMN 2011ISSUE 5
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16