Language Access Services
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Language Access Services
Proper communication is the foundation of good healthcare. The rise of cultural diversity in the country poses a health challenge in the language barrier, especially with limited English proficiency people. Patients with limited English proficiency have a difficult time understanding their physician and vice versa. Inaccurate information can lead to harmful results to a patient. Language access services provide people with LEP equal access to health services as English speaking people. This paper seeks to identify the most efficient medical interpretation, the ethical principles of the medical interpretation.
Medical Language Interpretations
Precise clinical interpretation is vital in developing rapport between LEP patients and their medical providers. According to Gupta and Torres, patients with poor English understanding, they have the right to access a medical interpreter for information sharing (Gupta and Torres 2016). Failure to involve a professional medical interpreter would lead to inaccurate information gathering, which leads to poor patient outcomes. The language barrier between the patient and healthcare provider makes it difficult to treat patients.
Three modes of interpretation are applied in healthcare provision, they include, consecutive, simultaneous, and sight translation (Xiang, Gerber and Zhang 2021). Consecutive language interpretation involves pausing to allow the interpreter to relay the message to the patient and the doctor. The mode of interpretation resembles a normal conversation, thereby making it the most common and preferred type of medical language interpretation. It is the best practice since it allows for clarification of important information.
Simultaneous interpretation, on the other hand, is the complete opposite of consecutive interpretation. The mode does not involve pauses for the interpreter (Gupta and Torres 2016). The interpretation method saves time as the interpreter speaks at the same time with the patient and the physician. Sight interpretation, the professional interpreter is required to explain the information on a written document to the patient. The interpreter has to ensure the patient understands the contents of the paper. The summarization mode of interpretation is not recommended in the medical field due to a message’s possible inaccurate relaying.
The Scenarios of LEP Patients
An elderly Hispanic male presented few medical symptoms. The man clenched his fits and pointed to his stomach while speaking Spanish. The man is accompanied by his fifteen-year-old granddaughter, who is fluent in English but understands basic Spanish. According to the girl, the man insists on using her as the translator since he trusts no one else. The second scenario is that of a Russian couple expecting their first child; however, the mother is obese and requires to undergo caesarian delivery in the next week to save the baby. The couple has a limited understanding of the English language; their bilingual friend accompanied them for translation purposes.
Ethical Consideration for LEP Patients
Health facilities applies several ethical considerations in the treatment of patients with LEP. According to Will and Miller, the patients in the mentioned scenario should first understand their language access rights (Will et. al2020). The health providers should issue short statements to the two patients and the caregivers that indicate their rights to receive language assistance. The hospital should document notice on how the patients can access language assistance in the facility. The law dictates that every hospital writes a statement in at least fifteen languages spoken in the state.
For quality patient treatment, healthcare providers have the responsibility to communicate to LEP patients through qualified interpreters. The medical providers should use qualified interpreters who possess all medical terminologies in both languages. The interpreter should additionally adhere to language access ethics and patient confidentiality. The patient should be encouraged not to provide their interpreters but instead, use the hospital’s language access services. In the older man’s case, the medical staff should prevent his granddaughter from translating for her relative since she is unqualified and lacks the medical terminologies necessary for information transfer.
Western and Eastern Models of Medical Practice
The practice of patient care and treatment is highly dependent on the paradigm of the health providers. The western medical practice looks into all the aspects of a patient from a scientific viewpoint. In contrast, the Chinese medical paradigm looks into the universe’s alignment and the individual patient (Mahadeva and Ford 2016). The western model involves a series of fact probing through hypothetical deduction. Medical providers conduct thorough research on a particular case or disease and conclude the analysis. Physicians, after that, apply the findings to the patient for treatment. The eastern medical practice involves using an inductive method whereby the health practitioner derives information from observation of the patient.
The interprofessional collaboration of the different medical fields is a crucial tool in western medical practice. The eastern medical approach, on the other hand, involves one specialized medical practitioner. The US medical practice also separates health from disease. However, the Chinese system perceives health as a balanced state and illness as an unbalanced state.
Conclusion
Language access services ensure people with limited English proficiency get the full medical services as the other English speaking patients. Consecutive language interpretation is the most practicable form of performance for these patients.
Reference
Gupta, A., & Torres, D. (2016). 16. Providing Language Access Services in a Global Economy. Immigration and America’s Cities: A Handbook on Evolving Services, 71.
Mahadeva, S., & Ford, A. C. (2016). Clinical and epidemiological differences in functional dyspepsia between the East and the West. Neurogastroenterology & Motility, 28(2), 167-174.
Will, A., Quick, K. K., Mazzei, C., Selameab, T., & Miller, J. L. (2020). Working with Interpreters as a Team in Health Care (WITH Care) curriculum tool kit for oral health professions. MedEdPORTAL, 16.
Xiang, T., Gerber, B. J., & Zhang, F. (2021). Language Access in Emergency and Disaster Preparedness: An Assessment of Local Government “Whole Community” Efforts in the United States. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 102072.
Question
For this assignment, watch the video from the link below:
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. (n.d). Using language access services. Accessed from: https://thinkculturalhealth.hhs.gov/resources/videos/using-language-access-services
In a 2- to 3-page paper:
• Compare and contrast the range of medical language interpretation and describe what is considered “best practice.”
• Consider and describe at least two scenarios in which patients are non-English speaking and qualified language interpretation is not provided. What are the key ethical principles to be considered? What are the implications for the patient in each scenario?
• How would the scenario relate to the code of ethics in public health?
• Compare and contrast the model of medical practice between the U.S. (Western scientific paradigm of medicine) and another country with a different culture.
• Which healthcare model is better and why?
Assignment Expectations
Length: 2 – 3 pages (excluding the cover page and the reference list).