Moving towards a culture of inquiry.

The number of inpatients with limited English proficiency is not well known in our community hospital. We wanted to identify the languages patients and nurses are comfortable using when communicating about health care needs. For this study, we surveyed a convenience sample of patients registering for hospital admission during a one-week period and nursing staff employed in the inpatient setting. The results of the surveys will help our organization better plan for the types and frequency of interpretive services required by our patients. In addition to the information gained from the research, the process allowed us to broaden the nursing research program to include multidisciplinary teams and research questions.