Communication Barriers Affecting Self Management of Diabetes in the Latino Community: An Integrative Literature Review

Abstract

Background: The rising numbers of diabetes in the Latino community are concerning. With the Latino population continuously growing and them being the third largest ethnic group with diabetes, research in this area must be conducted to find a solution. Due to this reason, an area of concern are the barriers that are contributing to the lack of self- management in this community.

Objective: The purpose of this review is to determine factors that contribute to communication barriers and to identify interventions that will help solve this problem.

Methods: An integrative literature review was conducted using three search engines CINAHL, PUBMED, and the Nursing and Allied Health Database along with using inclusion and exclusion criteria to find the desired articles.

Results: Ten peer-reviewed articles were analyzed and organized into a data matrix by source, sample population, methods, barriers, interventions, and results.

Conclusion: It was determined that communication barriers include the patient's English ability, Spanish fluency in patient-provider concordance and the relationship between patient and healthcare provider. However due to the complexity of these communication barriers interventions suggested and used to help overcome these barriers include using interpreters, translators, diabetes education classes, and cultural competency classes. Further research is needed to concretely establish the relationships

Keywords: Latino, Diabetes Mellitus, Communication Barriers, Language Barriers