Why are senior care language services important?

by Target Language Translation Services

- December 14 2021

Doctor visits can be stressful. They can be even more stressful if there is a language barrier blocking effective communication between the patient and the doctor. Using professional medical interpretation services in senior care is essential to providing Limited English Proficiency (LEP) patients access to appropriate care and services. Having an interpreter available also helps make sure that a patient understands what medical professionals are recommending or requesting and that the patient is satisfied with his or her care. In fact, many doctors and nurses require the assistance of interpreters not only to overcome the obvious language barriers, but also to navigate potential cultural differences. Avoiding miscommunication during a patient’s stay in senior care is extremely significant to avoid any errors in care attributed to language barriers (and potential lawsuits that may arise from these errors if a trained interpreter is not present).

The Problem of Shortage of Interpreters

Some states- such as Oregon, have only a small percentage of medical interpreters with the qualifications to deliver their much needed service: Out of 3500 medical interpreters in Oregon, only about 100 have the right qualifications. For elderly patients in Oregon, this means they would only have a 3% chance of booking a qualified or certified interpreter to help them communicate effectively with a doctor. With these facts in mind, how could one not be concerned about the quality- let alone availability- of trained and qualified professional medical interpreters? The age group that needs access to quality medical care more than any other. Additionally, they cannot afford to be shopping around for different health care providers simply because they were unable to communicate and be understood in a different language.

Importance of Professional Interpreters

It may seem like a patient’s friend or family member could interpret for them whenever necessary. However, it is important that the interpreter hired is a trained professional. Untrained interpreters are more likely to make errors or even violate confidentiality issues, resulting in potentially adverse outcomes. Friends and family may also be embarrassed by some of the medical topics that come up and utilize euphemisms or different terminology than what the medical team had used. This could cause confusion on both sides. Not to mention that this could be a clear HIPAA violation!

On the other hand, a professional interpreter will be trained in the necessary skills and terminology and is fully equipped to deal with the situations that may arise with the individual in senior care. Professional interpreters are also legally bound to confidentiality agreements, protecting both health care professionals and the patient. An interpreter’s code of ethics is another key difference in utilizing a professional. Non-professionals are unfamiliar with such confidentiality and ethics requirements, and therefore, they could make egregious errors or missteps that may result in improper care.

Having an interpreter available for your senior care patient not only helps make sure that the patient can communicate with the medical team, but also statistically results in higher patient satisfaction since the patient is able to feel confident in knowing his or her needs are being met, and is able to communicate in his or her preferred language. The interpreter may also be able to clarify cultural differences for the medical team if such a situation arises, since the professional interpreter is well-versed in the cultures associated with both languages. If the patient’s stay in senior care is temporary, use of a trained interpreter is also associated with significantly shorter stays and reduced readmission rates.

While on-site interpreting is preferred, understandably there will be situations in which this is not possible if an on-site interpreter is not available. In these instances, it is also possible to use telephonic interpreting services. When in doubt about a patient’s English proficiency, it is best to use either an on-site or telephonic interpreter to assess and help with the potential language barrier for the best possible outcome for both the senior care facility and its patient.

When Senior Care Language Services are Needed

Medical interpreters in aged care settings help at every step of the patient journey – from routine medical services to laboratory and hospital procedures. Although languages access is crucial to all LEP patient communications, here are just a few situations where senior care language services facilitate communication:

Taking a medical history

Giving a diagnosis

Performing medical procedures

Understanding treatments and prescriptions

Understanding discharge and follow up instructions

Admission to ER or urgent care

Initial medical consultations

Physical checkups

Surgery

Informed consent

Communicating with family non-English speaking family members

Translation Services

For people with limited English proficiency, translation services require not only target language/English proficiency, but also a high level of detail and comprehension to topic-specific terminology.

At Target Language Translation, our translators are subject-matter experts who have been through specialized training to meet the unique set of skills, knowledge, and experience to ensure proficiency in medical, education, and social services content, formatting, etc. Target Language Translation only hires translators that have native fluency in both the Target Language and English, and have at least 2 years experience in written translation. We continue in our efforts to increase the pool of well-trained and qualified medical interpreters to support our elderly community.

This article is reprinted from TELELANGUAGE, ATS and JR LANGUAGE.

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