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Table 5 Characteristics of referred patients (N = 236)

From: The relevance of clinical ethnography: reflections on 10 years of a cultural consultation service

Patient characteristic

N

%

Patient’s proficiency in French

 Fluent in French

79

33.5

 Basic knowledge

84

35.5

 No French spoken

73

31.0

Region of origin

 Africa

134

56.8

  Subsaharan Africa

94

39.8

  East Africa

32

13.6

  North Africa

8

3.4

 Asia

50

21.4

  Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka

19

8.1

  Middle-east

13

5.5

  South-east Asia

11

4.7

  Other

7

3.0

 Europe

42

17.9

  Balkans

35

14.8

  Other

7

3.0

 America

8

3.4

  Central America

5

2.1

  South America

3

1.3

 Missing data

2

0.8

Migration status in Switzerland

 Stable residency permit/Swiss passport

111

47.0

 Asylum seeker/undocumented migrant

79

33.5

 Other (tourist, diplomat, etc.)

9

3.8

 Missing data

37

15.7

Time spent in Switzerland

 Less than 1 year

46

19.5

 1 to 10 years

68

28.8

 More than 10 years

79

33.5

 Missing data

43

18.2

Religion

 Muslim

77

32.6

 Christian

75

31.8

 Other

12

5.1

 Missing data

72

30.5

Education

 None

23

9.7

 Primary school completed

29

12.3

 Secondary school completed

46

19.5

 University degree

27

11.5

 Missing data

111

47.0

Main medical problem

 Infectious disease (HIV, TB)

34

14.4

 Chronic pain/somatization

28

11.9

 Mental health problem

27

11.4

 Cancer

21

8.9

 Neurological disease

18

7.6

 Other

108

45.8