Health-care barriers facing Portland's Vietnamese to be discussed at Bates

Lien Le, a Bates College junior from Portland, will discuss the results of her study on health-care barriers facing Portland’s Vietnamese community at Bates College March 6 at 4:15 p.m. in the Edmund S. Muskie Archives. Le’s talk is part of the weekly TGIF lecture series at Bates and is open to the public without charge.

After interviewing members of Portland’s Vietnamese community about their social and demographic status, source of health care coverage and acculturation variables, Le, who immigrated from Vietnam in 1991, found that a lack of proficiency in English, understanding about the U.S. health care system and financial resources are the main barriers to seeking adequate and appropriate health care.

Le, a dean’s list biology major, is coordinator for the International Club, a member of the Big Brother/Big Sister program and a teaching assistant in bacteriology at Bates. She also serves as a volunteer Vietnamese translator at Maine Medical Center. The daughter of Gia Nguyen of Portland, Le was valedictorian of her class at Portland High School.