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SALT LAKE CITY — Intermountain Healthcare hospitals in Idaho and Utah are using video remote interpretation services to help caregivers communicate with people who use sign language and others who have limited English proficiency.
Intermountain Healthcare has already been using the language interpretation service since January 2015 and has roughly 700 iPads throughout its 22 hospitals, according to its language services regional manager, Carlos Martinez. The company reports using roughly 22,000 minutes of interpretation services within the first five weeks of using the service. Doctors and nurses have access to interpreters from 33 call centers around the country.
“I’ve used it with Spanish and sign language, and both were very well received,” said Dr. Adam Balls, vice chairman of the emergency department for Intermountain Medical Center.
The Utah Department of Health reports 14 percent of Utahns speak languages other than English, and the same report says 6 percent of Utahns who speak a foreign language do not speak English well.
“Sometimes the patient's condition warrants immediate and fast access to those interpretation services,” said Balls.
Intermountain Healthcare hospitals have access to interpreters within the community who represent 17 languages. The problem health care providers face is finding more interpreters from the community who are medically trained for interpretation services, have cleared background checks, have had the required immunizations and are trained in HIPPA regulations, according to Ben Becker, director of the Clinical Communications Center for Intermountain Healthcare.
“The personal touch is always nice,” said Kathryn Allen, an Intermountain Healthcare registered nurse. “That’s why we strive to get as many in-house and in-room translators as possible.”
The language interpretation service has 200 languages, mainly audio, with 13 available in remote video conference calls. For health care providers, this option has become a viable alternative to on-site interpreters, especially in rural areas.
“Being able to see someone in your own language is second best,” said Allen.
Allen has used the service about three times.
“One patient was deaf and needed American Sign,” said Allen. “And because this (iPad) is mobile, we were able to take this with her as we walked down the hall and the interpreter was able to give her our instructions.”
Health care providers said the video remote interpretation service helps them avoid medical mistakes. A 2012 report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says nearly 9 percent of the U.S. population is at risk for medical mistakes.
The next step now for Intermountain Healthcare is to furnish its Life Flight helicopters and its hundreds of home care nurses with iPads for video remote interpretation services.
