Patients with limited English proficiency are more likely to be readmitted to hospital

Patients with limited English proficiency face barriers when it comes to health care, and new research finds that this may also extend to hospital readmission rates. Researchers looked at nearly 10,000 patients at two Toronto hospitals — roughly a fifth of whom had limited English proficiency — who had been discharged with one of two acute conditions or two chronic conditions. Those with limited English proficiency and the chronic conditions — COPD or heart failure — were more likely to be readmitted to the hospital compared to those who were fluent in English. There wasn’t a significant difference, however, among the two patient groups when it came to readmission rates for the examined acute conditions — pneumonia or a hip fracture. Chronic conditions often require more complex care, and more communication with physicians, which may explain the differences.