Having practiced medicine professionally for more than 27 years, Dr. Louis Hampers has a wealth of knowledge that he has acquired from his years as a clinician, professor, administrator, and researcher. The majority of Dr. Hampers’ clinical career has been spent in the Pediatric Emergency Room, but his research work has included language barriers in medicine, variation in physician practice patterns, urgent care and fast track medicine, febrile seizures, tropical medicine, and substance abuse treatment.

Much of Dr. Hampers’ research has been cited hundreds of times, and some of his studies have influenced hospital policies throughout the U.S. One of his primary areas of interest has been the influence of language barriers in patient care and satisfaction, which was a direct result of the year he spent working in Africa.

From 1995-1996, Dr. Louis Hampers worked as a Medical Officer at the Presbyterian Church of East Africa Chogoria Hospital in Kenya, where he was one of two doctors manning a 400-bed hospital. The experience pushed Dr. Hampers to his every limit, and he often wondered how much of his care was compromised by the severe language barrier (LB) that existed between him and his patients.

Upon returning to the U.S. to complete his fellowship training at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Dr. Hampers was exposed for the first time to the process of medical research and began to conduct his own. Between 1998 and 2011, he authored and co-authored 34 publications.

Who is Dr. Louis Hampers?

Dr. Louis Hampers is an accomplished pediatrician who lives and works in Colorado. His long career began with an undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College, followed by concurrent MD and MBA degrees at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and the Wharton School.

He completed residency training in Pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and sub-specialty training in Pediatric Emergency Medicine at the Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago before relocating to Colorado. In Denver, Dr. Hampers served as the Medical Director of the Emergency Department at the Children’s Hospital of Colorado and Section Head of the Section of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, while he was also an Associate Professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Dr. Hampers is well-known amongst his peers for being talented, focused, passionate, engaging, and energetic, always putting his patients’ needs ahead of his own. During the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, Dr. Hampers donated his time to a local urgent care clinic, where he was thrilled to work closely alongside families again.

Which Research of Dr. Louis Hampers Has Benefited Spanish-Speaking Patients?

In 2002, Dr. Hampers co-authored a study with Suzan S Mazor, Vidya T Chande, and Steven E Krug that addressed the negative effects that language barriers have on patient satisfaction. The objective of the study was to determine if a medical Spanish course for pediatric emergency department (ED) physicians would increase patient satisfaction for Spanish-speaking families with a limited understanding of English.

The study put nine pediatric ED physicians through a 10-week medical Spanish course before testing the physician’s abilities to communicate with Spanish-speaking-only families. During the entire process, professional interpreters were available to help both parties. The Spanish-speaking-only families filled out satisfaction questionnaires before and after the physicians completed their medical Spanish course.

A total of 143 Spanish-speaking-only families filled out the satisfaction questionnaires, all of who had similar English proficiency and ER visit details. After taking the 10-week medical Spanish course, physicians were confident enough in their communication skills to use interpreters much less often.

Not only were interpreters used less often, but the surveyed families declared that they strongly agreed with the statements, “the physician was concerned about my child,” "made me feel comfortable,” "was respectful,” and "listened to what I said."

The finding by the authors of the publication was that a 10-week medical Spanish course for pediatric ED physicians ultimately resulted in a decreased use of medical interpreters while simultaneously increasing patient satisfaction.

Has Dr. Louis Hampers Completed Further Research into Eliminating LBs in Medicine?

Prior to his research into the benefits of medical Spanish courses, Dr. Louis Hampers completed a study in 1997 that determined how language barriers influenced ED visits.

Dr. Hampers found that in cases in which an LB existed, mean test charges were significantly higher: $145 versus $104, and ED stays were significantly longer: 165 minutes versus 137 minutes. Ultimately, the presence of an LB accounted for a $38 increase in charges for testing and a 20-minute longer ED stay.

This particular study was deeply influential to hospitals now providing interpreters and actually improving care in the pediatric ED while also reducing cost.

Dr. Hampers’ subsequent research furthered his recommendation beyond interpreters, to increase the adequacy of physicians’ personal language skills.

The Effects of Dr. Louis Hampers’ Research are Far-Reaching

In addition to many hospitals now offering interpreters to patients, the effects of Dr. Hampers’ research studies have influenced medicine and hospital policies in many ways. His work has resulted in lower costs, decreased testing, shorter ED visits, increased patient satisfaction, and increased patient understanding of diagnoses and procedures. His work will live on for years to come, especially in the realm of the pediatric ED and amongst those patients with language barriers.