Health professionals' knowledge, attitudes, and experiences in relation to immigrant patients: a questionnaire study at a Danish hospital.
OBJECTIVE
A study was undertaken to identify variations in knowledge, attitudes, experiences, and communication among different categories of hospital staff with regard to immigrant patients in order to identify potential barriers for effective diagnosis, treatment, and care of immigrant patients.


METHODS
The study is based on a questionnaire mailed to doctors, nurses, and assistant nurses at Bispebjerg Hospital, a major general hospital in Copenhagen. Among the 1,012 persons included the total response rate was 58%.


RESULTS
A majority of all three professional groups obtain their knowledge on immigrants through the media and patient contact, and less through travels, courses, and colleagues. Doctors and nurses showed the most positive attitudes towards different statements about immigrants, and assistant nurses the most negative. Doctors and nurses also had most frequent contacts with immigrant patients and found their communication more satisfactory compared with assistant nurses. Many health workers expressed complaints about immigrants' inappropriate use of health services. That doctors and nurses had more positive attitudes towards immigrants than assistant nurses could be explained by their higher education providing a more "fundamental safety feeling", or a feeling of not being in a competitive situation with immigrants. Assistant nurses had the least satisfactory communication with immigrant patients, possibly because they had less frequent contacts compared with doctors and nurses.


CONCLUSIONS
The study provides a foundation for new interventions and priorities within the healthcare system regarding immigrant patients.
Michaelsen
Jette
J
Department of Health Services Research, Institute of Public Health, University of Copenhagen in cooperation with the Clinical Unit of Preventive Medicine and Health Promotion, Bispebjerg Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Krasnik
Allan
A
Nielsen
Anette
A
Norredam
Marie
M
Torres
Ana Maria
AM
D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003718:Denmark; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005006:Ethnicity; D006801:Humans; D010564:Personnel, Hospital / Q000523:psychology*; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires