The impact of parental primary language on communication in the neonatal intensive care unit

Palau, Mauricio A.; Meier, Maxene; Brinton, John T.; Hwang, Sung Kwan; Roosevelt, Genie; Parker, Thomas A.

doi:10.1038/s41372-018-0295-4

Cited by 34 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Evidence of disparities in quality of perinatal care according to race/ethnicity [ 9 , 10 ] and language status [ 11 ] is well-documented and is partly responsible for disparities in perinatal outcomes. Perinatal quality improvement may lead to inadvertent widening or persistence of social disparities [ 12 , 13 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leveraging the Massachusetts perinatal quality collaborative to address the COVID-19 pandemic among diverse populations

et al. 2021

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Objective We leveraged the Massachusetts perinatal quality collaborative (PQC) to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Our goals were to: (1) implement perinatal practices thought to reduce mother-to-infant SARS-CoV-2 transmission while limiting disruption of health-promoting practices and (2) do so without inequities attributable to race/ethnicity, language status, and social vulnerability. Methods Main outcomes were cesarean and preterm delivery, rooming-in, and breastfeeding. We examined changes over time overall and according to race/ethnicity, language status, and social vulnerability from 03/20-07/20 at 11 hospitals. Results Of 255 mothers with SARS-CoV-2, 67% were black or Hispanic and 47% were non-English speaking. Cesarean decreased (49% to 35%), while rooming-in (55% to 86%) and breastfeeding (53% to 72%) increased. These changes did not differ by race/ethnicity, language, or social vulnerability. Conclusions Leveraging the Massachusetts PQC led to rapid changes in perinatal care during the COVID-19 crisis in a short time, representing a novel use of statewide PQC structures.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leveraging the Massachusetts perinatal quality collaborative to address the COVID-19 pandemic among diverse populations

et al. 2021

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“…Detta kan underlättas genom att sjukvården har utarbetade lokala eller centralt utarbetade riktlinjer för när och hur tolk skall användas vid samtal när språkbarriärer föreligger mellan vårdpersonal och föräldrar (Studie II; III). Enligt Gadamer (1997) (Palau et al, 2019).…”

Section: Språkbarriär Beroende Av Vårdorganisationenunclassified

Immigrant parents' experiences of communicating with healthcare professionals at the neonatal unit: An interview study

Patriksson

Nilsson

Wigert

2019

Journal of Neonatal Nursing

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Gothenburg 2019 Cover illustration: Per-Anders Nilsson Säg till om du önskar tolk Kommunikation i neonatalvård mellan föräldrar och vårdpersonal när språkbarriärer föreligger © Katarina Patriksson 2019 katarina.patriksson@vgregion.se ISBN 978-91-7833-416-2 (PRINT) ISBN 978-91-7833-417-9 (PDF) http:/hdl.handle.net/2077/59062 Printed in Gothenburg, Sweden 2019 Printed by BrandFactory Till min familj, till Hulda. Alla lyckliga familjer är lyckliga på samma sätt, men varje olycklig familj är olycklig på sitt eget sätt. ABSTRACTFamily-centred neonatal care encourages parents to participate in the care of their child. When language barriers exist between healthcare personnel and parents, a third party is needed to achieve satisfactory communication. Difficulties in direct communication increase the risk of misunderstanding between healthcare personnel and parents, and may lead to elevated anxiety among parents. The overarching objective of this dissertation was to increase knowledge concerning the communication difficulties that arise between parents and healthcare personnel when language barriers are present. Study I is a quantitative questionnaire study analysing the use of interpreters and awareness of the guidelines for their use. Study II is a qualitative interview study describing the experiences of care personnel regarding communication with parents. Study III is a qualitative interview study of parents who speak Arabic through an interpreter, describing their experiences of having their child under care in the neonatal ward and communicating with care providers. Study IV is a qualitative observational study elucidating the communication difficulties that arise between healthcare personnel and parents when their child is under care in the neonatal ward and language barriers are present. The results show that healthcare personnel lack guidelines for the use of interpreters, and that interpreters are mainly used in the context of medically oriented discussions. Healthcare personnel expressed anxiety and frustration because the information they wished to communicate to parents was misunderstood. The parents expressed gratitude for the warmth and concern of the healthcare personnel despite inadequate communication. Communication was complicated by the constant need to have a third party present to interpret. Our observations revealed that language was not the only significant barrier, and that cultural differences could also lead to misunderstandings. Cultural interpreters or cultural navigators were used to facilitate communication; they were not trained interpreters, but did speak several frequently occurring languages. These individuals were made available to the parents and were able to interpret situations that could arise during nursing care, or to clarify when misunderstandings arose between parents and healthcare personnel. When the father spoke Swedish but the mother did not, the father often wished to interpret for his partner; however, such offers were rarely accepted by healthcare personnel, who instead ...

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“…Additionally, health insurance (private vs. public), a proxy of SES, relates to prenatal and postnatal health opportunities, negatively impacting the health of those with lower SES 32 . Moreover, in the United States, non-English-speaking families in the NICU have been shown to be more susceptible to misunderstanding their child’s diagnosis and treatments because clinical staff and families do not share a common language 33 . To date, there is limited information about whether and how parents’ opportunities to provide KC for their prematurely born infant in the NICU are influenced by their socioeconomic and linguistic background 3 , despite the beneficial role of this developmental care practice.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Disparities in Kangaroo Care for Premature Infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Brignoni-Pérez

Scala

Feldman

et al. 2020

Preprint

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OBJECTIVESThe aim of this study was to investigate whether preterm infants whose families have lower socioeconomic status (SES) or communicate with clinical staff in a language other than English experience differences in the total amount, frequency, and duration of Kangaroo Care (KC) compared to preterm infants of higher SES or primarily English-speaking families.METHODSParticipants were infants born <32 weeks gestational age (GA), N=116. We defined family SES by the infants’ health insurance (private/higher vs. public/lower) and family language by the language mothers used to communicate with clinical staff (English vs. Other language). Family SES or family language groups were compared on: (1) the total amount of KC infants experienced during hospitalization; (2) frequency of KC per visitation days; and, (3) duration of KC events per day.RESULTSInfants in the lower SES and Other language groups experienced KC in reduced amounts, lower frequencies, and shorter durations than infants in either the higher SES or English language groups. SES and language group differences remained significant after controlling for family visitation and GA at birth. After controlling for SES, language group differences in KC duration remained significant.CONCLUSIONSOur findings revealed disparities in the total amount, frequency, and duration of KC in the neonatal intensive care unit as a function of both family SES and language families used to communicate with clinical staff. These disparities reduced infants’ access to this developmental care practice shown to stabilize clinical status and promote neurodevelopment. We recommend that hospital nurseries implement policies that minimize such disparities.Table of Contents SummaryTotal amount, frequency, and duration of Kangaroo Care for preterm infants in the NICU varied as a function of family’s socioeconomic status and language.What’s Known on This SubjectIn the United States, disparities in health care delivery and medical outcomes have been identified on the basis of patient or family socioeconomic status and the language patients or families use to communicate with clinical staff.What This Study AddsExtending to the NICU, the amount, frequency, and duration of Kangaroo Care experienced by preterm infants differed both by family’s socioeconomic status and the language families use to communicate with clinical staff. Policy changes are needed to reduce these disparities.Contributors’ Statement PageDr. Brignoni-Pérez conceptualized and designed the study, acquired data from the electronic medical record, analyzed the data, drafted the initial manuscript, and reviewed and revised the manuscript. Drs. Scala, Marchman, Feldman, and Travis conceptualized and designed the study, supervised data abstraction and analysis, and critically reviewed and revised the manuscript for important intellectual content. All authors approved the final manuscript as submitted and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

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The impact of parental primary language on communication in the neonatal intensive care unit

Cited by 34 publications

References 18 publications

Leveraging the Massachusetts perinatal quality collaborative to address the COVID-19 pandemic among diverse populations

Leveraging the Massachusetts perinatal quality collaborative to address the COVID-19 pandemic among diverse populations

Immigrant parents' experiences of communicating with healthcare professionals at the neonatal unit: An interview study

Disparities in Kangaroo Care for Premature Infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

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