Communicating with a patient with minimal English - case study

Supporting information

• You’re a GP.
• Your patient is Mrs Chen, a 65-year-old woman who attends her GP surgery with her daughter.
• Mrs Chen moved to the UK ten years ago to live with her daughter and son-in-law after the death of her husband. She speaks minimal English.
• She explains that she has had intermittent diarrhoea for the past six weeks. She has not lost weight and has not had any blood in her motions.
• The results of your examination are normal. As her GP, you explain that you wish to refer her to a surgeon for further investigation.