Medical Interpretation: A Bright Spot on the Healthcare Horizon

By Louis Provenzano, President and COO of Language Line Services

(HealthNewsDigest.com) - In many ways, the health industry’s future looks fuzzy.

In Washington, healthcare is in the legislative hot seat, while across the country consumers are putting medical care on the back burner, electing to delay routine visits to physicians and even surgery.

Employers are seeking new alternatives to shift the burden of paying for medical care to employees, and insurers are developing new products that aim to control how and when medical tests and procedures are provided.

In one area, however, the future of healthcare delivery has some degree of clarity and can be measured by a set of predictable numbers. The field in question is medical interpretation, and changes in the country’s demographics suggest that this growing medical profession will continue its rapid expansion in the years ahead.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the language interpretation field in general is expected to grow by close to 24 percent in the next decade, a rate that exceeds that of almost all other careers. In the healthcare arena specifically, the demand for trained medical interpreters, who provide on-site and remote interpretation for patients who are limited English proficient (LEP), will likely grow at or above this 24 percent rate, as the LEP population in the United States grows - and as medical providers realize compelling new reasons to provide interpretation services.

The numbers tell a very persuasive story about how and why medical interpretation as a profession is growing both in size and in importance. The U.S. Census Bureau has predicted that minorities will comprise the majority of the country’s population by 2042, with the demographic shift being driven by greater diversity and increases in immigration.

Today, more than 24 million people across the nation need language support, and more than 176 languages and dialects are spoken from coast to coast. Almost 20 percent of the U.S. population speaks a language other than English at home, and the number of foreign-born individuals in the country has now reached an all-time high of 38.1 million, according to the Census Bureau’s 2007 American Community Survey.

Now, and in the future, when non-English speakers or those with limited English skills enter a hospital or other medical facility, both they and those providing medical services can benefit greatly from a trained medical interpreter to help them communicate. The interpreter is the bridge between a patient and potential life-saving care. With special knowledge of medical terminology, processes, and privacy rules, trained medical interpreters are helping to achieve better results in the healthcare setting. In fact, statistics show that language is a major factor in cases of misdiagnosis and instances of poor treatment at hospitals, along with delays in service and access to preventive care. When interpreters are utilized, communication improves and healthcare professionals can be more effective in their work.

The medical interpretation profession will grow, then, not just because there will be a greater number of LEP patients to serve in the future; it will also grow because there is an increasing awareness that trained interpreters improve accuracy and efficiency. Today, medical facilities that receive any federal funds are required to provide language access services under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, meaning that almost every hospital in the country must provide interpretation support in some form.

The Title VI requirement has itself been open to interpretation, with some facilities relying on bilingual clerical staff or even family members to help with limited English speakers, and other facilities providing patients with trained medical interpreters. As more facilities reach a critical mass of LEP patients, and as more see the benefits of a structured language access program, the interpretation profession will continue to expand.

One final development is driving a positive outlook for medical interpretation as a career. While healthcare is a highly regulated field, medical interpretation currently lacks any kind of national standardization or oversight. Leaders in the language access field have been working for years to institute a national program of certification for medical interpreters, consisting of education, testing and continuing education components.

Recently, the International Medical Interpreters Association (IMIA) and Language Line Services, a global provider of interpretation services, signed an agreement to join forces to implement a national certification for medical interpreting. With standards for training and skills assessment in place, medical interpreters should see standards for compensation follow suit. Furthermore, medical facilities that are currently required to offer language access services will be better equipped to make the case for insurance reimbursement.

While some of the numbers depend on a shifting healthcare environment, the basic math for a strong future for the medical interpretation profession is in place. In the years and decades ahead, as language diversity grows and the importance of interpretation gains greater recognition, medical interpreters will certainly play an increasingly prominent role.

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Louis Provenzano is President and COO of Language Line Services, a leading interpretation company that provides language services to nearly 90 percent of the nation’s 911 emergency first responders, thousands of hospitals and more than 75 percent of the Fortune 500. Mr. Provenzano’s realm of experience also includes previously sitting on the board of the California Healthcare Interpretation Association and fluently speaking numerous languages. For more information on Language Line Services, visit www.languageline.com.

By permission of www.HealthNewsDigest.com