The United States (U.S.) resident Marshallese population is growing rapidly. Subsequent to this growth, Marshallese patients experience language and cultural barriers when attempting to access medical care in the U.S. This study: (a) documents how the Marshallese refer to biological and adopted family members; (b) identifies barriers encountered by Marshallese when seeking medical care; and (c) describes effective communication strategies for healthcare providers to use when treating Marshallese patients. Six key informant interviews were conducted in English with bicultural (U.S. and native Marshallese) informants, the majority of whom were women who worked in a healthcare setting. Participants were recruited through the Center for Pacific Islander Health in Arkansas and through personal contacts within the Marshallese community. Based on the study findings, examples of how providers can make genetic services more accessible and meaningful for Marshallese patients are also provided. This study is particularly relevant to genetic counselors as the number of Marshallese patients and families needing their services is growing.

中文翻译：

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从居住在美国的马绍尔病患者中汲取具有文化和医学意义的家庭健康史。

美国（Marshallese）居民在迅速增长。在这种增长之后，马绍尔人在美国寻求医疗服务时会遇到语言和文化障碍。这项研究：（a）记录了马绍尔人如何指代生物学和被收养的家庭成员；（b）确定马绍尔人在寻求医疗服务时遇到的障碍；（c）描述了医疗人员在治疗马绍尔病患者时应使用的有效沟通策略。用英语对六种主要的信息提供者进行了采访，采访对象是双文化（美国和马绍尔人），其中大多数是在医疗机构工作的女性。参与者是通过阿肯色州太平洋岛民健康中心以及马绍尔人社区内部的个人联系招募的。根据研究结果，还提供了有关提供者如何使马歇尔病患者更容易获得遗传服务和更有意义的实例。这项研究与遗传咨询师特别相关，因为马绍尔族患者和需要其服务的家庭数量正在增加。