Complementary and integrative healthcare communication in Chinese American patient / primary care visits: An observational discourse analysis

Evelyn Y. Ho; Genevieve Leung; Brady Lauer; Jane Jih; Leah Karliner

PEC Innovation (Dec 2022)

Complementary and integrative healthcare communication in Chinese American patient / primary care visits: An observational discourse analysis

Evelyn Y. Ho,
Genevieve Leung,
Brady Lauer,
Jane Jih,
Leah Karliner

Affiliations

Evelyn Y. Ho: Department of Communication Studies, University of San Francisco, 2130 Fulton St., San Francisco, CA 94117, USA; Asian American Research Center on Health, San Francisco, CA, USA; Corresponding author at: University of San Francisco, 2130 Fulton Street, Communication Studies KA 313, San Francisco, CA 94117, USA.
Genevieve Leung: Department of Rhetoric and Language, University of San Francisco, 2130 Fulton St., San Francisco, CA 94117, USA
Brady Lauer: Department of Communication Studies, University of San Francisco, 2130 Fulton St., San Francisco, CA 94117, USA
Jane Jih: Asian American Research Center on Health, San Francisco, CA, USA; Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, 1545 Divisadero St., San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Multiethnic Health Equity Research Center, University of California San Francisco, 490 Illinois Street, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
Leah Karliner: Asian American Research Center on Health, San Francisco, CA, USA; Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, 1545 Divisadero St., San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Multiethnic Health Equity Research Center, University of California San Francisco, 490 Illinois Street, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 1
p. 100082

Abstract

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Objective: Chinese-American patients use CIH at high rates but disclosure of CIH use to clinicians is low. Further, the content of CIH talk between patients and their clinicians is not well described. We aimed to characterize CIH talk between Chinese-American patients and their primary care clinicians. Methods: Discourse analysis of 70 audio-recordings of language concordant and discordant-interpreted visits. Results: Nearly half of all visits (48.6%) had some form of CIH communication. ‘Simple CIH talk’ focused on a single CIH topic resulting in a positive, neutral, or negative response by clinicians. ‘CIH-furthering talk’ was characterized by clinicians and patients addressing more than one CIH topic or including a combination of orientations to CIH by both clinicians and patients. CIH-furthering talk characterized by clinician humility could enhance rapport, cultural understanding, and open communication. CIH-furthering talk also led to miscommunication and retreat toward biomedicine. Conclusion: CIH communication occurred frequently during language concordant and discordant-interpreted visits with Chinese-American patients. Both patients and clinicians used CIH-furthering talk as a conversational resource for managing care. Innovation: This discourse analysis of visits between Chinese-American patients and their clinicians advances understanding of CIH communication beyond disclosure, illustrating the complexity of linguistic and cultural nuances that affect patient care.

Published in PEC Innovation

ISSN: 2772-6282 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: Netherlands
LCC subjects: Medicine: Public aspects of medicine
Website: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/pec-innovation

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