Breaking Language Barriers By Kevin Anderson
Diversity Majority of Americans are English speaking In 2007, 20% spoke non-English language at home > 25% non-English speaking families are linguistically isolated Rising population of non-English speaking patients.
Language Barriers History of present illness (HPI) Language barriers may result in: – Misdiagnoses – Incorrect treatment – Patient noncompliance – Decreased quality of care – Medical errors – Decreased patient safety
Solutions? Make them learn English! Interpreters! Professional hospital employed interpreters! Telephonic interpretation!
ENTER: MARTTI
MARTTI Immediate on-demand access to professional interpreters Offers telemedicine, consultation, and interpreter training services Helps Limited English Proficient(LEP) patients in medical, pharmacy, legal, and emergency services Complies with HIPAA regulations
MARTTI Mobile equipment Wireless Built to hospital specifications Toll free customer support
LAN MARTTI is designed by Language Access Network Boasts MARTTI’s dependability, user- friendly, HIPAA certified, helps speed diagnoses and improve outcomes “All your healthcare provider has to do is a push a button” - LAN
Drawbacks Cost; pay-per-minute Less suited for psychiatric consultations and/or lengthy consultations Gender specific interpreter not always available
Summary Growing population of non-English or limited English speaking Americans MARTTI provides visual access to professionally trained/certified interpreters Easy to use Time effective