The TRAMASS research team is once again focusing on a crucial issue: the difficulties migrants face in accessing healthcare when they do not speak the language of their host country. Their new study, published in the Journal of Migration and Health (Elsevier) and titled Systematic meta-review on migrant healthcare access: Language barriers and the role of translation, analyzes how translation and cultural mediation can make the difference between receiving adequate medical care or being excluded from the system.
The research, conducted by Mar Díaz Millón and María Dolores Olvera Lobo, reviews 38 previous studies and confirms what many migrants experience every day: language barriers can easily turn into healthcare barriers. Not understanding a diagnosis, being unable to describe one’s symptoms or lacking trust in medical staff out of fear of not being understood can have serious consequences for health.
The article highlights the essential role of translation and cultural mediation services in ensuring equitable healthcare. However, such services remain underused in many hospitals and health centers. The authors also point out that migrant women face additional challenges related to gender, cultural stigma, and economic vulnerability.
The study concludes by stressing the need for action: professional translation must be integrated into healthcare systems, medical staff must receive training in cultural competence, and financial barriers preventing access to care must be removed.
This new publication reinforces TRAMASS’s research line on translation and intercultural mediation in healthcare, reaffirming its commitment to improving health communication and promoting the inclusion of migrant communities.