Translation on the Wards

[Rogue Synapse]

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I'm curious to know how medical care is provided to people (i.e. immigrants) who don't speak a common language like Spanish or French. If you have a subpopulation of people who only speak Swahili, for instance, how do you interact with them? I've always been told that Spanish is the money language to learn for going into healthcare, but there are other languages out there, too.

 

[deleted77919]

Large hospitals often have translators on staff for the common languages spoken in the area. For the less common languages most hospitals contract with a national translation service (AT&T I think, but I could be wrong). You use a two handset phone, the patient speaks in one, the translator then translates and you reply into the other . . . it's a bit tedious, but necessary at times.

 

[njbmd]

I'm curious to know how medical care is provided to people (i.e. immigrants) who don't speak a common language like Spanish or French. If you have a subpopulation of people who only speak Swahili, for instance, how do you interact with them? I've always been told that Spanish is the money language to learn for going into healthcare, but there are other languages out there, too.

There is a three-way phone that is available in practically every hospital that has translators available on a 24 hour basis for almost every language. I always use this phone for obtaining informed consent and for doing histories for every person whose language I do not speak. This service has literally hundreds of languages available at a moments notice. You have to dial into their system and voila, instant translation by professional translators. The conversations can be taped for legal purposes too.

 

[8744]

We just talk loud and add an "o" or an "a" to the end of every other word.

Is there any other way?

 

[Rogue Synapse]

There is a three-way phone that is available in practically every hospital that has translators available on a 24 hour basis for almost every language. I always use this phone for obtaining informed consent and for doing histories for every person whose language I do not speak. This service has literally hundreds of languages available at a moments notice. You have to dial into their system and voila, instant translation by professional translators. The conversations can be taped for legal purposes too.

Isn't this phone-in translation fairly expensive? How would a rural healthcare system deal with translation?

BTW, thanks for the excellent replies. I went to an Alliance for Hispanic Health luncheon that really got me interested in translation issues, and also really made me regret not mastering Spanish when I had the chance.

 

[MossPoh]

We just talk loud and add an "o" or an "a" to the end of every other word.

Is there any other way?

That works too...then if they look at you weird you just slow it down and say it louder.

 

[njbmd]

Isn't this phone-in translation fairly expensive? How would a rural healthcare system deal with translation?

I believe the service is free to non-profit hospitals from AT&T. You could contact them and find out. I know that all you need is a phone jack. The phone has two receivers; one for the clinician and one for the patient. Again, you might have to pay for the recording but the translation service is free.

 

[jocg27]

Isn't this phone-in translation fairly expensive? How would a rural healthcare system deal with translation?

BTW, thanks for the excellent replies. I went to an Alliance for Hispanic Health luncheon that really got me interested in translation issues, and also really made me regret not mastering Spanish when I had the chance.

I imagine a Swahili-speaking family in a rural US area is accustomed to communication problems.

Seriously though, I think in the majority of these situations, they'd have a family member or something that would come and translate if the phone setup's unavailable. This is far from ideal, of course, for a lot of reasons. But if that's the only option, it's what happens.