Practice

Practice Pointer

Consultations for people from minority groups

Aziz Sheikh, professor of primary care research and development1, Rashid Gatrad, consultant paediatrician2, Sangeeta Dhami, locum general practitioner3

1 Division of Community Health Sciences, GP Section, University of Edinburgh EH8 9DX, 2 Department of Paediatrics, Manor Hospital, Walsall WS2 2PS, 3 Edinburgh, EH17 8UE

Correspondence to: A Sheikh aziz.sheikh@ed.ac.uk

This article provides practical suggestions on ways to improve communication with people from minority ethnic and faith groups

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Most developed societies are ethnically, linguistically, and religiously diverse, and recent trends in migration mean that this diversity is set to increase. Irrespective of background, most people want (and most health professionals aim to provide) high quality care that is accessible and sensitively delivered. For many people in minority groups, the care sought and the professional knowledge base, skills, and competencies needed to deliver such care are no different from those needed for people from the majority population, but in some instances standard approaches may need to be modified to achieve comparable outcomes. Making the effort to do so is important for ethical and legal reasons, but also because it will be appreciated and remembered. Conversely, failures in communication often have a lasting negative effect on the doctor-patient relationship; in particular, such failures can erode trust, not only in the clinician, but also in the health service in general.

The . . . [Full text of this article]


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Relevant Article

Ethnic minorities and their perceptions of the quality of primary care
Aziz Sheikh
BMJ 2009 339: b3797. [Extract] [Full Text]

This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Sheikh, A. (2009). Ethnic minorities and their perceptions of the quality of primary care. BMJ 339: b3797-b3797 [Full text]  

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

Good health to all minority groups
Joyce M Carter
bmj.com, 7 Jul 2008 [Full text]



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