The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #60090

Laura M. Hurt, BSN¹, Beverly C. Flynn, PhD, RN, FAAN², Elizabeth Morris, MSW¹, and Dixie Ray, PhD³. (1) Healthy Communities, Columbus Regional Hospital, 2400 E. 17th Street, Columbus, IN 47201, 812-376-5939, lhurt@crh.org, (2) School of Nursing, Indiana University, 1111 Middle Drive, Indianapolis, IN 46202, (3) Indiana University School of Nursing, 1111 Middle Drive, Indianapolis, IN 46202

With the rapid influx of Spanish-speaking people, communities are increasingly faced with improving access to health care for this population. The Bartholomew County Healthy Communities Initiative in Indiana has been proactive in responding to the health needs of Latinos locally. The Proyecto Salud Action Team, in partnership with the local Volunteers in Medicine Clinic has initiated Spanish-language service. The weekly clinic uses bilingual volunteers from the community, and has instituted the collection of data to assess patients’ perceived health status and satisfaction with clinic services. Data collection is conducted in Spanish using the SF12 and The Patient Satisfaction Questionnaires, both of which have established levels of reliability. Data for one year on 375 patient visits reveal that over fifty percent of the patients reported their general health as good to excellent. However, the SF12 results indicate low physical and mental health status. On the Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire patients rated the clinic high on accessibility in terms of clinic location with some dissatisfaction with the hours open. Patients rated the clinic high on quality of care and overall satisfaction with the clinic. Individual barriers noted included travel time to the clinic, childcare, and time off work. The results of the surveys have been shared with the Proyecto Salud Action Team and used to expand services to the Latino population, including improved volunteer training, increased interpretation assistance for patients referred to other health services, formation of diagnosis-specific education/support groups, and establishment of a Spanish language telephone help line for non-emergency health needs.

Learning Objectives:

• Describe how health care access for the Latino population is linked to the Healthy Communities Initiative.
• Recognize the services offered through a voluntary Spanish language clinic in partnership with local resources.
• Discuss the data collection methods used to assess Latino patients' health status and satisfaction with clinic services
• Learn how the results of data analysis are being used to improve services for the Latino population.

Keywords: Latino Health, Access to Health Care

Related Web page: www.crh.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.