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Patient Experience and Perception of First Language Usage in Healthcare: The Welsh Perspective

Maisie E. Edwards Orcid Logo, Owen Bodger Orcid Logo, Menna Brown Orcid Logo, Llinos Roberts Orcid Logo, Luke D. Roberts Orcid Logo, Jeffrey Davies Orcid Logo, Alwena Morgan Orcid Logo

Journal of Patient Experience, Volume: 13

Swansea University Authors: Owen Bodger Orcid Logo, Menna Brown Orcid Logo, Jeffrey Davies Orcid Logo, Alwena Morgan Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1177/23743735261417165

Abstract

Research shows that using a patient's preferred language is vital for effective healthcare communication. Consultations in a second language can lead to treatment delays and misdiagnoses. In Wales, while Welsh and English have equal status in the public sector, independent primary care provider...

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Published in: Journal of Patient Experience
ISSN: 2374-3735 2374-3743
Published: SAGE Publications 2026
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa71399
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spelling 2026-03-13T14:26:13.4632704 v2 71399 2026-02-10 Patient Experience and Perception of First Language Usage in Healthcare: The Welsh Perspective 8096440ab42b60a86e6aba678fe2695a 0000-0002-4022-9964 Owen Bodger Owen Bodger true false cf3c261a9100f79a3f1d018fa4066595 0000-0003-1427-1648 Menna Brown Menna Brown true false 2cb3d1d96a7870a84d2f758e865172e6 0000-0002-4234-0033 Jeffrey Davies Jeffrey Davies true false 9ea39c3d0935c897cb9fcd3ba550af71 0000-0002-3441-5357 Alwena Morgan Alwena Morgan true false 2026-02-10 MEDS Research shows that using a patient's preferred language is vital for effective healthcare communication. Consultations in a second language can lead to treatment delays and misdiagnoses. In Wales, while Welsh and English have equal status in the public sector, independent primary care providers like General Practices (GPs) are not fully bound by Welsh Language Standards (WLS), resulting in inconsistent bilingual provision. This mixed methods study combined focus groups and a survey of 361 Welsh speakers to explore awareness of WLS and experiences of bilingual GP care. Analysis revealed low awareness (27%) of the WLS and significant unmet language needs. 71% had never been offered a Welsh-language consultation and 57% with English-speaking GPs said they would feel more comfortable having Welsh-medium consultations. In high Welsh-speaking areas, 32% felt restricted by not being able to use their first language during GP appointments. There was strong support for recording language preference in health records. Findings highlight both the need and desire for Welsh-language provision in primary care, and the importance of policy changes to support an “active offer” approach. Journal Article Journal of Patient Experience 13 SAGE Publications 2374-3735 2374-3743 patient perspectives/narratives; bilingual care; language discordance; clinician–patient relationship; communication; inclusion; patient experience 9 2 2026 2026-02-09 10.1177/23743735261417165 COLLEGE NANME Medical School COLLEGE CODE MEDS Swansea University 2026-03-13T14:26:13.4632704 2026-02-10T13:47:55.4726354 Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences Swansea University Medical School - Medicine Maisie E. Edwards 0000-0002-2855-6823 1 Owen Bodger 0000-0002-4022-9964 2 Menna Brown 0000-0003-1427-1648 3 Llinos Roberts 0009-0005-3012-0956 4 Luke D. Roberts 0009-0005-0778-608x 5 Jeffrey Davies 0000-0002-4234-0033 6 Alwena Morgan 0000-0002-3441-5357 7 71399__36410__e3e7e5e2e0e94ef38ef25c0921d89fc0.pdf 71399.VoR.pdf 2026-03-13T13:47:10.7921446 Output 926709 application/pdf Version of Record true © The Author(s) 2026. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. true eng https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title Patient Experience and Perception of First Language Usage in Healthcare: The Welsh Perspective
spellingShingle Patient Experience and Perception of First Language Usage in Healthcare: The Welsh Perspective
Owen Bodger
Menna Brown
Jeffrey Davies
Alwena Morgan
title_short Patient Experience and Perception of First Language Usage in Healthcare: The Welsh Perspective
title_full Patient Experience and Perception of First Language Usage in Healthcare: The Welsh Perspective
title_fullStr Patient Experience and Perception of First Language Usage in Healthcare: The Welsh Perspective
title_full_unstemmed Patient Experience and Perception of First Language Usage in Healthcare: The Welsh Perspective
title_sort Patient Experience and Perception of First Language Usage in Healthcare: The Welsh Perspective
author_id_str_mv 8096440ab42b60a86e6aba678fe2695a
cf3c261a9100f79a3f1d018fa4066595
2cb3d1d96a7870a84d2f758e865172e6
9ea39c3d0935c897cb9fcd3ba550af71
author_id_fullname_str_mv 8096440ab42b60a86e6aba678fe2695a_***_Owen Bodger
cf3c261a9100f79a3f1d018fa4066595_***_Menna Brown
2cb3d1d96a7870a84d2f758e865172e6_***_Jeffrey Davies
9ea39c3d0935c897cb9fcd3ba550af71_***_Alwena Morgan
author Owen Bodger
Menna Brown
Jeffrey Davies
Alwena Morgan
author2 Maisie E. Edwards
Owen Bodger
Menna Brown
Llinos Roberts
Luke D. Roberts
Jeffrey Davies
Alwena Morgan
format Journal article
container_title Journal of Patient Experience
container_volume 13
publishDate 2026
institution Swansea University
issn 2374-3735
2374-3743
doi_str_mv 10.1177/23743735261417165
publisher SAGE Publications
college_str Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
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hierarchy_top_id facultyofmedicinehealthandlifesciences
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofmedicinehealthandlifesciences
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
department_str Swansea University Medical School - Medicine{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences{{{_:::_}}}Swansea University Medical School - Medicine
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description Research shows that using a patient's preferred language is vital for effective healthcare communication. Consultations in a second language can lead to treatment delays and misdiagnoses. In Wales, while Welsh and English have equal status in the public sector, independent primary care providers like General Practices (GPs) are not fully bound by Welsh Language Standards (WLS), resulting in inconsistent bilingual provision. This mixed methods study combined focus groups and a survey of 361 Welsh speakers to explore awareness of WLS and experiences of bilingual GP care. Analysis revealed low awareness (27%) of the WLS and significant unmet language needs. 71% had never been offered a Welsh-language consultation and 57% with English-speaking GPs said they would feel more comfortable having Welsh-medium consultations. In high Welsh-speaking areas, 32% felt restricted by not being able to use their first language during GP appointments. There was strong support for recording language preference in health records. Findings highlight both the need and desire for Welsh-language provision in primary care, and the importance of policy changes to support an “active offer” approach.
published_date 2026-02-09T07:00:52Z
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score 11.100739

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