A systematic review of quantitative and qualitative literature on health professionals' experiences communicating with Chinese immigrants

Abstract

Aim The aim of this study is to determine health professionals' experiences communicating with Chinese immigrants and identify potential education barriers. Background Health professionals caring for Chinese immigrants often encounter communication barriers, leading to uncertainty of quality of care. Design This study is a quantitative and qualitative systematic review. Data sources MEDLINE, Scopus, CINAHL, PubMed and Google Scholar were searched, limited to 1980 to October 2020. Review methods Articles were included if they reported results about health professional communication with Chinese patients. Quality was appraised using Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research guidelines and thematic synthesis conducted. Results Of 1363 articles, seven studies were included. These described provider–patient communication in primary care, oncology and palliative settings only. Three core themes were identified: (1) family‐centred health communication where family controls provider–patient information exchange; (2) mismatch of provider–patient health beliefs and knowledge on diet, nutrition, traditional medicine, place for death and disease prevention and (3) mismatch of language and resources as skilled providers proficient in specific dialects are limited; communication resources are perceived as infrequently available and content is insufficient. Conclusion Studies describing health professionals' experiences communicating with Chinese immigrants are limited. Key barriers identified included cultural and language disparities and communication resources are inadequate to support health professionals' needs.

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“…45 Chinese culture emphasizes collectivism and the well-being of the family unit which can impact the exchange of health information among family members. 45 For example, informed consent may require involving entire families, not just individual patients. 46 In palliative discussions, Chinese patients may avoid discussing death with their families as it is taboo to discuss culturally and there are strong values to reduce family burden.…”

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