308027
National certification of healthcare interpreters – a competency assurance process
The Certification Commission for Healthcare Interpreters (CCHI), founded in July 2009 as a 501(c)6 organization, serves the needs of bilingual, spoken-language healthcare interpreters committed to demonstrating their professional knowledge, skills and abilities by becoming certified based on national standards for competency assessment. The ultimate goal of the CCHI’s certification program is to raise the quality of interpreter services in public health and health care settings, and improve quality of communication between providers and patients with limited English proficiency.
CCHI has always followed the best psychometric practices and guidelines of the National Commission for Certifying Agencies to ensure that our certification tests measure knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to effectively perform the duties and tasks of the interpreter job at the entry level.
This presentation will discuss the co-relation between what the certification tests measure and the interpreter’s ability to facilitate effective provider-patient communication which contributes to lowering medical malpractice risk and liability when serving patients with limited English proficiency. It will describe CCHI’s three-step healthcare interpreter competency assurance process. The participants will contribute to assessing the need and industry’s preparedness for making the interpreter certification a standard qualification requirement.
Learning Areas:
Administration, management, leadershipDiversity and culture
Other professions or practice related to public health
Public health administration or related administration
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines
Learning Objectives:
Describe the CCHI's national healthcare interpreter certification program
Define co-relation between the interpreter certification and risk management of serving patients with limited English proficiency
Explain how interpreter certification as a qualification requirement contributes to patient’s safety
Keyword(s): Minority Health, Quality Improvement
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been the founding Commissioner (2009-2013) and chaired CCHI's healthcare interpreter certification test development committee from the very beginning. Currently as managing director, I oversee the certification tests delivery and development, as well we our outreach activities. From 2000 to 2013, I was Communications Director at the International Institute of Akron, a non-profit refugee resettlement agency in Ohio. Locally, I am actively involved in issues of equal access to health care for refugees.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.