INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION BARRIERS IN RELIGIOUSLY DIVERSE EMERGENCY MEDICAL TEAMS

In a world of increased migration, people of different cultures and religions increasingly work together. The goal of this study was to find whether differences in religion or culture can cause misunderstandings between medical emergency service volunteers. In a qualitative study, 88 volunteers between the ages of 15 to 18, from different cultures and religious attitudes were interviewed, with an open-ended questionnaire interview, giving the responders the opportunity to tell their story about communication conflicts, stemming from different values or religion. The interviews were analyzed according to relevant cultural theories' criteria. The main finding was that cultural and religious differences among volunteers may cause communication barriers.