Promising practices for providing language access in health care settings

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Mara K. Youdelman, JD, LLM, Jane Perkins, JD, MPH, Jamie Brooks, JD, and Deborah Reid, JD. National Health Law Program, 1101 14th St NW, Suite 405, Washington, DC 20005, 202-289-7661, youdelman@healthlaw.org

Language access for limited English proficient (LEP) individuals has a direct impact on access to health care for LEP Latinos and other language speakers. Nearly 47 million people speak a language other than English at home. The 2000 Census documented that over 28% of all Spanish speakers speak English “not well” or “not at all.” As demographic trends continue evolving, the prevalence, composition and geographic distribution of languages spoken will continue to be fluid. Multilingualism is spreading rapidly, in rural states and counties as well as urban environments.

Language barriers preclude effective communication between patient and provider and can lead to medical errors and/or increased medical costs. Over one quarter of LEP patients who needed, but did not get, an interpreter reported not understanding medication instructions, compared with only 2% of those who did not need an interpreter and those who needed and received one (The Access Project, 2002). Language barriers also impact access to care – non-English speaking patients are less likely to use primary and preventive care and public health services and more likely to use emergency rooms where they receive far fewer services than do English speaking patients.

Effective methods of providing language access are essential to ensure increased access to health care services for limited English proficient Latinos and others. This presentation will discuss two reports authored by the National Health Law Program released by the Commonwealth Fund. The first focuses on promising practices for providing language services in small healthcare provider settings (fewer than 10 clinicians). The second identifies ways state and local health benefit offices assist LEP individuals applying for and accessing public health programs such as Medicaid and SCHIP. The presenter also will discuss Medicaid reimbursement for language services.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant in this session will be able to

Identify promising practices for providing language services in a variety of health care settings.
Analyze how these developments can impact health access and outcomes for Latinos and in local communities.
Identify potential funding sources to pay for language services to increase language services and health care access for limited English proficient individuals.

Keywords: Access to Health Care, Health Disparities

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation

Improving Latino Access to Care

The 134th Annual Meeting & Exposition (November 4-8, 2006) of APHA