Background: Germany has 16 million people with a migration background. Health care for these patients is part of routine work in family medicine. Nevertheless, there is hardly any research on these patients' experience in family medicine. Methods: Three focus groups with a total of 39 participants Turkish ethnic origin but with different social and migration-generative background were organized in German language. The discussions were audiotaped, transcribed and coded according to Mayring in a content-analytic way. This was done independently by the researchers in a first step; then a categorical system was developed in a consensus process. Intentionally we worked in a multicultural and multi-professional team. Results: Misunderstandings, prejudices and discrimination were often mentioned by the participants (P) as being based on their migration background. Unequal care was experienced by most P. Participants stressed that empathy was often missing in the doctor-patient-relationship - resulting in no trust in the relationship, anxieties, insecurity and doctor hopping. P wished to be seen and treated as individuals with equal rights. Relevant "culture-specific" problems were not mentioned - except when being seen as instrumentalized for discrimination. They wished competence in intercultural communication to be integrated in continuous medical education to reduce discrimination. Conclusions: Different from other countries intercultural communication and competence is not part of continuous medical education in Germany. Intercultural communication should focus on the variability of individuals and not on the construction of "rules" for the appropriate behaviour in contact with people from "different cultures". © Deutscher Ärzte-Verlag.

intercultural communication immigrants discrimination Cultural diversity aspects Immigrant needs in family medicine

anxiety cultural value information processing doctor patient relation patient care insecurity human ethnic group Turkey (republic) audio recording professional practice consensus development cultural competence racism Trust Empathy medical record Behavior medical education Article migration health care quality content analysis health care system family medicine