JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Language-concordant healthcare, or healthcare in a patient’s language of choice, is an important element of health accessibility that improves patient safety and comfort, and facilitates an increased quality of care. Previous research has found that French-only speakers in some parts of Ottawa, Ontario face higher travel burdens to access language-concordant care compared to English-speakers. To help address this discrepancy, we developed a web-based mapping tool,named "Docmapper" in English and "TrouvezUnMedecin" in French, intended to help patients find language-concordant primary care.

Objective:

This study intended to assess patient experiences and satisfaction with an online interactive physician map as a means of identifying areas of improvement.

Methods:

The study used an online survey with questions related to user satisfaction. Responses to Likert scale questions were reported as summary statistics, and short-answer responses underwent thematic analysis. The study setting was Ottawa and Renfrew County, Ontario, and the surrounding region including Quebec.

Results:

A total of 93 respondents completed the survey and self-identified as living in Ontario or Quebec. Overall, 57 respondents (61.3%) were “Very Satisfied” or “Somewhat Satisfied” with the map, 16 (17.2%) were “Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied,” and 20 (21.5%) were “Very Dissatisfied” or “Somewhat Dissatisfied.” We found no significant differences in satisfaction by preferred language, age group, physician attachment, or intended beneficiary. 56 respondents provided short-answer responses to an open-ended question about map improvements. The most common specific suggestion was to show which physicians are accepting new patients (n=20). Other suggestions included data refreshes (n=6), user interface adjustments (n=23), and additional languages (n=2). Some participants also provided positive feedback (n=5) or expressed concern with their inability to find a family physician (n=5). Several comments included multiple suggestions.

Conclusions:

While most patients were satisfied with the online map, a significant minority expressed dissatisfaction that the map did not show which family physicians were accepting new patients. This suggests that there may be public interest in an accessible database of which family physicians in Ontario are currently accepting new patients.