Language background and communication skills of medical students

OBJECTIVE: The increasing proportion of medical students whose primary language is other than English and recent reports of poor communication skills of medical graduates has generated community concern about the methods of selection of students and their communication skills training. This paper examines the relationship between language background and examination performance in oral communication skills in Year 5 medical students. METHOD: Questionnaire data from all Year 5 students in the 1992 general practice terms were matched to examination results. RESULTS: Seventy percent of students responded. Most students whose primary language was not English passed, although some required remedial communication skills tuition. The most powerful predictors of poor performance were recent arrival in Australia and living in an environment where English was not spoken at home. CONCLUSION: Students with poor English oral communication skills should be encouraged to speak English away from the medical school and should be offered additional tuition so that their skills in other languages are not lost to the health-care system.