July 12, 2002

Patients and visitors come from all over the world and from all walks of life to seek medical care at the MGH. Because of language barriers, some patients may have difficulty communicating their medical needs to their caregivers. As a result, the MGH has increased its efforts to address the needs of patients and family members who may need additional assistance with communication. Recently, the hospital has focused on improving one particular area to help non-English speaking patients – enhancing medical interpreter services.

According to Lourdes Sanchez, manager of MGH Medical Interpreter Services, communication challenges between caregivers and patients have increased during the last few years because of an increase in patient volume and an increase in the number of patients whose first language is not English.

"A language barrier can interfere with patient care unless the right resources are used," says Sanchez. "Our staff can be an essential part of the caregiver team to provide culturally appropriate care."

MGH Medical Interpreter Services provides access to trained medical interpreters who are available for situations such as helping physicians with rounds on inpatient floors, assisting staff with outpatient office visits and obtaining patient consent for tests and procedures. Medical interpreters also can help with telephone consultations and appointment confirmations.

The staff interpreters speak 10 of the most common languages at the hospital: Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese, Chinese (Cantonese and Mandarin), Italian, Russian, Hatian-Creole, French, Khmer and Vietnamese. A pool of freelance medical interpreters also is available to interpret for other languages. When possible, employees and staff should give Interpreter Services staff 24 hours notice for scheduling purposes. In addition, a back-up telephone translation service can be accessed by employees and staff to cover less common languages or when an interpreter is unavailable.

Sanchez adds that another important aspect of using medical interpreters is that they understand medical terminology and can interpret complex information accurately. Medical interpreters also can be a good resource in explaining cultural issues and customs to caregivers, when appropriate.

According to Sanchez, MGH medical interpreters had more than 28,000 patient-provider encounters last year. This number is expected to increase because of the new state law mandating the use of medical interpreters in hospital settings at no cost to patients who need the service.

To meet this demand, Medical Interpreter Services requests MGHers to schedule interpreters at the same time as they make patient appointments. Medical Interpreter Services is open weekdays from 7 am to midnight, and weekends from 10 am to 10 pm. For more information, call (617) 726-6966.