The American Academy of Pediatrics released a policy statement with practice guidelines for treating children in immigrant families, who often face inequities in healthcare access and quality due to social determinants of health.
Five ways to improve care for immigrant children at the practice level:
1. Provide co-located or integrated mental health, social work and legal services in addition to primary care.
2. Employ medical interpreters, either remotely or in-person, to improve communication. Qualified translators are preferable to family members, friends or children.
3. Train clinicians and staff to work with language services. Test bilingual providers' language skills before allowing them to work without interpreters.
4. Develop culturally specific competencies such as immigrant health, global health and travel medicine.
5. Screen patients for social determinants of health.
To view more practice- and policy-level recommendations, click here.