The GP Show #196 Cultural Conversations and the Water Well Project with Dr Linny Phuong
How do you explain a blood test, a referral, or even shared decision-making when the entire healthcare system is foreign to your patient? In this deeply thoughtful and practical episode, Dr. Linny Phuong, paediatric infectious diseases physician and founder of the award-winning Water Well Project, joins Dr. Rob Park to explore how we as clinicians can better connect with patients from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Drawing on personal stories, community experience, and years of frontline advocacy setting up and running The Water Well project, Linny shares how a simple, respectful conversation can build trust, shift health outcomes, and empower patients—especially those navigating an unfamiliar system.
From chaotic first health sessions in church foyers to calm insights about interpreters, symbols, and the power of pausing, this episode is packed with memorable lessons and practical tips for any GP. Whether it's making sense of preventative health, navigating language barriers, or just knowing when a nod doesn’t mean understanding, Linny offers real tools to make your consultations more inclusive, compassionate, and effective. If you've ever had a moment where something felt "lost in translation," this one’s for you.
https://www.thewaterwellproject.org/
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