Spanish-speaking patients’ satisfaction with clinical pharmacists’ communication skills and demonstration of cultural sensitivity

The primary purpose of this study was to assess Spanish-speaking patients’ satisfaction with their clinical pharmacists’ communication skills and demonstration of cultural sensitivity and to determine their association with Spanish-speaking patients’ socio-demographic, clinical, and communication factors, as well as pharmacists’ Spanish proficiency, cultural rapport, knowledge of complementary and alternative medicines, and race/ethnicity. A self-administered survey was designed to assess the study objectives, and a convenience sample of 93 adult (≥18 years) Spanish speakers with limited English proficiency was obtained from five CommUnityCare Health Centers in Austin, Texas. Satisfaction with communication skills and satisfaction with cultural sensitivity were measured as a 6-item construct and a 4-item construct, respectively, where Spanish-speaking patients rated their satisfaction using a 4-point Likert scale (1=extremely dissatisfied, 2=dissatisfied, 3=satisfied, 4=extremely satisfied). The participants’ mean age was 52.0±14.3 years, where respondents primarily were female (65.9%), utilized publicly-funded insurance (100%), received less than a high school education (86.9%), and reported a “fair” health status (64.8%). Spanish-speaking participants reported overall satisfaction with their clinical pharmacists’ communication skills (3.6±0.5) and demonstration of cultural sensitivity (3.6±0.5). Study participants also indicated items within the cultural rapport subscale were generally important characteristics to Spanish speakers (3.5±0.5). The cultural rapport subscale instructed participants to rate the importance of pharmacists’ specific characteristics (i.e., speaks Spanish, is Latino, provides written information in Spanish, is respectful, is kind, is friendly, and understandings the importance of family opinion in healthcare decisions) on a 4-point Likert scale, where 1=not at all important, 2=somewhat important, 3=important, 4=very important. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that cultural rapport was the only significant predictor of Spanish speakers’ satisfaction with their clinical pharmacists’ communication skills (p<0.01) and demonstration of cultural sensitivity (p<0.001). The results of this study may be instrumental in understanding the communication-related and cultural sensitivity-related needs of Spanish speakers in relation to pharmacists’ cultural rapport and may help initiate future initiatives and interventions involving pharmacists and Spanish-speaking patients with limited English proficiency.