Approximately 63 million Americans speak a language other than English at home, and more than 26 million have limited English proficiency (LEP, defined as a self-reported ability to speak English less than very well).1,2 Approximately 12 million school-age children (22%) speak a language other than English at home, a number that has tripled since 1979.2 In the city of Houston, at least 145 languages are spoken at home.3 The marked growth in non–English primary language (NEPL) and LEP families is attributable to the rapid increase in America of the foreign-born population, which grew from 9.6 million in 1970 to 41.3 million in 2013.1,2 Numerous studies document that language barriers affect multiple aspects of health care, including access, health status, use of services, patient-physician communication, satisfaction with care, participation in clinical research, quality, and patient safety.1,2,4,–...
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October 2016
Pediatrics Perspectives|
October 01 2016
Family Language Barriers and Special-Needs Children
Ricardo A. Mosquera, MD;
aDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Houston, Texas;
Address correspondence to Ricardo A. Mosquera, MD, University of Texas Medical School at Houston, 6410 Fannin, Ste 510, Houston, TX. E-mail: ricardo.a.mosquera@uth.tmc.edu
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Cheryl Samuels, MSN;
Cheryl Samuels, MSN
aDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Houston, Texas;
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Glenn Flores, MD
Glenn Flores, MD
bMedica Research Institute, Minneapolis, Minnesota;
cDepartment of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota; and
dDivision of Health Policy and Management, University of Minnesota School of Public Health, Minneapolis, Minnesota
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Address correspondence to Ricardo A. Mosquera, MD, University of Texas Medical School at Houston, 6410 Fannin, Ste 510, Houston, TX. E-mail: ricardo.a.mosquera@uth.tmc.edu
POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST: The authors have indicated they have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.
FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE: The authors have indicated they have no financial relationships relevant to this article to disclose.
Pediatrics (2016) 138 (4): e20160321.
Article history
Accepted:
June 15 2016
Citation
Ricardo A. Mosquera, Cheryl Samuels, Glenn Flores; Family Language Barriers and Special-Needs Children. Pediatrics October 2016; 138 (4): e20160321. 10.1542/peds.2016-0321
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