Authors' recommendations: The quality of the available evidence is insufficient in isolation to determine whether education alone or as part of a complex intervention, compared with no education, affects physicians' cross-cultural competence, minority patients' health outcomes, or physician behaviour. Other comprehensive evidence support, however, that various forms of education either alone or together with other interventions may affect both health personnel practices and patient outcomes. Electronic reminders to physicians may in certain contexts have a small effect on health professionals' practice and health outcomes for minority patients. The quality of the available evidence is insufficient to determine whether the use of remote interpretation affects patient satisfaction and leads to better communication, whether ethnic matching of client and therapist affects patients' understanding, symptom status, or belief in the usefulness of therapeutic strategies, or whether supportive interventions in the form of increased staff resources influence health outcomes for minority patients. There is need for more research on general quality improving interventions such as those we identified in this review. Moreover, there is need for more research on the potentially ethnic disparities in diagnosing, treating and following-up of patients from minority groups in Norway. If it should prove to be unfounded differences between minorities and the majority population in health care services, studies should be initiated to map the particular barriers, and interventions tailored to these barriers should be designed. Any interventions that are initiated should be rigorously evaluated and further developments should be monitored over time for assessing trends.

Project Status: Completed

Year Published: 2010

URL for published report: http://www.kunnskapssenteret.no/publikasjoner/effekt-av-tiltak-for-%C3%A5-forbedre-kvaliteten-p%C3%A5-helsetjenester-til-etniske-minoriteter-en-systematisk-oversikt-over-randomiserte-kontrollerte-fors%C3%B8k?threepage=1

English language abstract: An English language summary is available

Publication Type: Not Assigned

Country: Norway

Organisation Name: Norwegian Institute of Public Health

Contact Address: Universitetsgata 2, Postbox 7004 St. Olavs plass, NO-0310 Oslo NORWAY. Tel: +47 23 25 50 00; Fax: +47 23 25 50 10;

Contact Name: Berit.Morland@nokc.no, dagny.fredheim@nokc.no

Contact Email: Berit.Morland@nokc.no, dagny.fredheim@nokc.no

Copyright: Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services (NOKC)