TDNet Discover

Introduction: Effective communication between patients and anesthesia providers in the preoperative period is crucial for building trust and ensuring quality care. In multicultural healthcare settings, anesthesia providers assessing adult patients undergoing elective surgery present unique challenges. With approximately 26 million people in the U.S. having limited English proficiency (LEP)1, anesthesia providers face increasing challenges as language barriers preclude effective communication. Language barriers constitute a health inequality primarily affecting minority groups due to several factors such as age, gender, education, and socioeconomic status.2 The impact of language barriers on patient care leads to increased anxiety, decreased satisfaction, increased challenges obtaining informed consent, increased surgical delays, increased frustration among patients and providers, decreased postoperative pain control, extended length of hospital stay, and increased hospitalization costs.1,3-8 Using in-person translators can improve communication between patients with LEP and anesthesia providers;however, their cost and limited availability present challenges for healthcare institutions. Therefore, exploring cost-effective alternatives such as educational leaflets becomes essential as these can improve communication, reduce costs, avoid surgical delays, enhance the patient experience in the hospital, and enhance patient outcomes during the preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative periods.