交流是一个社会化的过程。在这个过程中，人们在他们生活的环境里创造符号并赋予意义。而医生面对患者时的沟通能力一定程度上决定了能否成功解决患者的健康问题。研究探讨了在面对印度尼西亚北苏门答腊Mitra Sejati医院的多文化病人时，医生使用了怎样的沟通方式。研究采用了民族志研究的定性方法。根据研究结果，医生和患者的跨文化交流过程最初是以语言和非语言交流的形式进行的。跨文化交流中出现了语言、感知和文化障碍。医生能通过使用沟通技巧和病患成功沟通，比如记住并说出病人的名字，问候病人，和病人握手或接触，解释所采用的治疗方式，和病人沟通病情，并给病人自述病情的机会，在与病人人际沟通时提出合适有效的问题。 Communication is a process of socialization.In the process, people create symbols and give meaning to the environment in which they live.The ability of doctors to communicate with patients determines, to a certain extent, whether they can successfully solve their health problems.The study explored how doctors communicate with multicultural patients at the Mitra Sejati Hospital in North Sumatra, Indonesia.The study adopts the qualitative method of ethnography.According to the results of the study, the process of cross-cultural communication between doctors and patients was initially in the form of verbal and non-verbal communication.There are language, perception and cultural barriers in cross-cultural communication.The doctor can successfully communicate with the patient by using communication skills, such as remembering and saying the patient's name, greeting the patient, shaking hands or contacting the patient, explaining the treatment method used, communicating with the patient and giving the patient the opportunity to describe the condition, and asking appropriate and effective questions when communicating with the patient.