What is the link between medical interpretation and patient safety? Improving patient care for Limited English Proficient (LEP) patients is a top priority for hospitals and healthcare systems in the United States. Trained medical interpreters provide necessary communication between health care professionals and LEP patients that increases the quality of patient care, increases patient satisfaction, and supports
Medical interpretation services are used in hospitals, doctor’s offices, health clinics, conferences, and all other health care locations where the patient or participant does not speak English or has a limited ability to communicate in English. Certified medical interpreters are trained in specific medical terminology to be able to accurately communicate medical information and facilitate communication
Understanding the best practices for using telephonic interpreters in hospitals helps facilitate meaningful communication between health care providers and Limited-English Proficient (LEP) patients. There are a few simple things you can do in any over-the-phone interpreting session to make your time with a professional interpreter effective and empowering for yourself and for your LEP patients.
Many rural area hospitals in the United States face unique challenges that must be overcome in order to deliver the highest quality care to patients. According to the American Hospital Association, about 20% of Americans live in rural areas without easy access to primary care or specialist medical services. For example, the number of physicians
The increase of foreign-born populations and linguistic diversity in the U.S. has led to higher numbers of limited English proficient (LEP) patients. One in five United States residents speaks a non-English language at home, and 25 million people in the U.S. speak English “less than very well.” What does this mean in a health care
Multilingual Patient Care is more important for healthcare professionals than ever before. In fact, 1 in 5 U.S. residents speaks a language other than English at home. When it comes to serving limited-English proficient patients, having a comprehensive language access program is key. Since 1991, Telelanguage has helped thousands of healthcare organizations to improve language
Handling transitions in care for LEP patients…communication is key! Communication in health care settings is especially important when patients experience transitions in care. When patients move to another care setting or are discharged from the hospital, a thorough understanding of discharge instructions is necessary for patient compliance. But for patients with limited English proficiency, transitions
Medicare and Language Access – Open Enrollment for Medicare begins October 15th, 2018 and ends on December 7, 2018. Why are Medicare and language access so important during this period? 8% of the 57 million U.S. residents enrolled in Medicare are limited English proficient. Navigating healthcare can be confusing for anyone, but for Limited-English proficient populations, communication barriers make
How do language barriers affect hospital readmissions rates? More than 60 million Americans speak a language other than English at home, and 41% of this population (8% of the total U.S. population) have limited English proficiency (LEP). The increase in LEP patients in the U.S. can present communication barriers for healthcare systems to overcome in
What is telehealth? Telehealth uses mobile technology to deliver health-related services, such as remote doctor consultations and patient monitoring to connect patients to vital health care services through means such as video-conferencing, remote monitoring, electronic consults, and wireless communications. With the increasing adoption of telehealth services, it’s important to understand how we can health care providers
