Presentation
Understanding Communication Barriers in Healthcare: A Review
SessionPoster Session 2
DescriptionEffective communication is essential for quality healthcare, ensuring accurate diagnoses, adherence to treatment plans, and improved patient outcomes. However, communication within healthcare settings is often impeded by barriers that hinder effective interactions between patients and providers. This study presents a review aimed at mapping the most common types of communication barriers in healthcare, evaluating their impacts on patient outcomes and system-level performance, and identifying interventions designed to mitigate them. We systematically searched for peer-reviewed literature using PubMed, yielding 1,064 articles. After removing duplicates and conducting abstract and full-text screening, 103 articles were included for final analysis. Findings show that limited English proficiency remains a predominant linguistic barrier, while psychological stressors such as stigma and emotional reluctance reduce patient disclosure and trust. Mental model mismatches further hinder shared decision-making. These barriers collectively contribute to adverse outcomes, including increased anxiety, diagnostic errors, care delays, and workflow inefficiencies. Interventions identified include empathy-based training, professional interpretation services, and AI-powered tools like multilingual chatbots. Despite advancements, few studies examine how these barriers interact or assess the scalability of interventions across diverse settings. This review highlights the need for integrative, human-centered communication strategies aligned with safety, usability, and health equity goals.
Event Type
Poster
TimeWednesday, October 15th5:30pm - 6:30pm CDT
LocationRiverside East
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