Language difficulties in outpatients and their impact on a chronic pain unit in Northwest Switzerland

Many foreign patients attending our pain clinic are unable to understand one of the four Swiss national languages and are also unable to speak English. Therefore, communication with these patients can be very difficult or even impossible. Consequently, diagnosis and treatment may also prove difficult. Recognizing that language barriers can have deleterious effects, the use of an interpreter is at times the only way to communicate, however, the financial responsibility becomes that of the health care provider.