Preliminary Study: Challenges in Assessing and Treating Patients with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) – A Physical Therapist's Perspective
Faculty Mentor
Fahed Mehyar
Presentation Type
Poster
Start Date
5-7-2025 11:30 AM
End Date
5-7-2025 1:30 PM
Location
PUB NCR
Primary Discipline of Presentation
Exercise Science
Abstract
As the percentage of individuals with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) in the United States continues to rise, the demand for a more culturally and linguistically inclusive healthcare system grows. Previous research has primarily focused on improving hospital and physician care for patients with LEP and identifying barriers between these patients and therapists in inpatient rehabilitation settings. However, limited research has examined the strategies used by physical therapists to manage patients with LEP in outpatient clinical settings. This study aimed to identify the challenges in assessing and treating patients with LEP, as well as the strategies employed by outpatient physical therapists to enhance the assessment and treatment of patients with LEP. Six physical therapists were recruited, and data were collected through surveys and semi-structured interviews. The results indicate that the most frequently reported challenges included time constraints and issues with interpreter communication. Strategies to address these challenges included spending extra time to ensure patients understood the treatment plan, keeping the sessions “basic”, and ensuring the availability of an interpreter during sessions. Future research should continue to explore ways to improve the physical therapy management of patients with LEP.
Recommended Citation
Campos, Paola M. and Mehyar, Fahed PhD, "Preliminary Study: Challenges in Assessing and Treating Patients with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) – A Physical Therapist's Perspective" (2025). 2025 Symposium. 23.
https://dc.ewu.edu/srcw_2025/ps_2025/p2_2025/23
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Preliminary Study: Challenges in Assessing and Treating Patients with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) – A Physical Therapist's Perspective
PUB NCR
As the percentage of individuals with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) in the United States continues to rise, the demand for a more culturally and linguistically inclusive healthcare system grows. Previous research has primarily focused on improving hospital and physician care for patients with LEP and identifying barriers between these patients and therapists in inpatient rehabilitation settings. However, limited research has examined the strategies used by physical therapists to manage patients with LEP in outpatient clinical settings. This study aimed to identify the challenges in assessing and treating patients with LEP, as well as the strategies employed by outpatient physical therapists to enhance the assessment and treatment of patients with LEP. Six physical therapists were recruited, and data were collected through surveys and semi-structured interviews. The results indicate that the most frequently reported challenges included time constraints and issues with interpreter communication. Strategies to address these challenges included spending extra time to ensure patients understood the treatment plan, keeping the sessions “basic”, and ensuring the availability of an interpreter during sessions. Future research should continue to explore ways to improve the physical therapy management of patients with LEP.
