The overall objective of Improving Care for Individuals with Limited English Proficiency: Facilitators and Barriers to Providing Language Services in California Public Hospitals is to better understand the impact of the efforts undertaken by California public hospitals to improve language access to all Californians, and ultimately to identify strategies that engage hospitals in facilitating organizational change to address the provision of language services.

Evidence shows that effective communication between patients, clinicians, and other health care professionals is a critical component of providing high quality care. Providing individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP) the means to communicate effectively with their health care providers is critical to improving their experience in the health care setting, the quality of care they receive, and their health outcomes.

The findings in this evaluation suggest that systems for providing language services in California public hospitals are continuing to evolve, but it should also be noted that despite environmental challenges and ongoing financial and budget constraints, California public hospitals are making great strides.

Because public hospitals in California are willing to systematically examine their provision of language services, identifying both strengths and weaknesses, they are well poised to share their experiences as well as make improvements.

Hospitals that commit to providing high-quality language services to their patients likely will be rewarded with greater patient and staff satisfaction, which can provide them with a competitive advantage as the demographic trends in California and across the country continue to point to increased linguistic diversity. State and national resources should monitor and improve language services for all patients with LEP to support high quality health care for all.