Increasing in-person medical interpreter utilization in the NICU through a bundle of interventions.

ABSTRACT:

Background

In-person medical interpretation improves communication with patients who have preferred language other than English (PLOE). Multi-dimensional barriers to use of medical interpreters limit their use in the NICU.

Local problem

Medical teams in our NICU were not consistently using in-person medical interpreters, leading to ineffective communication with families with PLOE.

Methods/interventions

Interventions included staff educational sessions and grand rounds regarding equitable language access, distribution of interpreter request cards to families, and allocation of dedicated in-person interpreters for NICU rounds. Interpreter utilization was calculated by total requests per Spanish-speaking person day in the NICU.

Results

Interpreter utilization inc

SUBMITTER: Feister J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11825357 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature