(MENAFN- The Peninsula) The Peninsula
A 24-hour translation service is helping improve clinical care and reducing delays at Hamad Medical Corporation's (HMC) Cuban Hospital.
Over 2,000 patients benefit from the translation service every month. The service which was launched last year aims at improving communication between Arabic-speaking patients and Cuban health professionals working at the hospital.
The initiative, which consists of in-person interpreters and telephone translation services, is resourced by translators with Arabic, Spanish, and English language skills and has benefited thousands of patients since being introduced. Liza Reinberger, Director, Health Information Management Service at The Cuban Hospital, said that the service has improved the patient experience within the Hospital's Emergency, Inpatient, and Outpatient
Departments and has also resulted in safer patient care. She says since the service was introduced, there have been fewer delays and an overall enhancement in the delivery of healthcare as many of the challenges associated with patients and doctors not speaking the same language are eliminated.
'The Cuban Hospital is unique in that all of our medical and nursing staff speak Spanish as their first language. While many of our staff speak English, there are a limited number of Arabic speaking clinicians at the hospital, said Reinberger.
'Language barriers can complicate doctor-patient communication but through the translation service, our Arabic-speaking patients can ask questions and get medical information in their language. The translator becomes a medium between the doctor and patient they become the patient's voice.
'We've seen an improvement since the service was introduced, specifically in terms of reduced delays in our outpatient departments because our professional interpreters can talk to the patient in their native language and then immediately relay what the patient has said in the native language of the doctor. Our interpreters help assure effective communication between doctors and patients and help prevent misunderstandings, added Reinberger.
Since 2017, The Cuban Hospital has seen a 30 percent increase in Arabic-speaking patients using its outpatient departments. The Cuban Hospital was officially opened in January 2012 as a joint project between the governments of Qatar and Cuba. It functions in collaboration with Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) and has more than 450 Cuban staff.
The Cuban Hospital provides all medical and surgical services in more than 25 specialties. The Hospital has seen a sharp rise in the patient visits over the years, recording over 85,000 outpatient visits and nearly 6,500 inpatients in 2018, compared to 63,000 outpatient visits and 4,700 inpatient visits in 2016. The hospital has also experienced a 35 percent growth in the number of surgical procedures it performed since 2016.
Philip Lowen, Chief Executive Officer of the Cuban Hospital, said that hospitals can be challenging to navigate, especially during emergencies. He said the regular stress of a hospital visit is amplified when there is a language barrier, underscoring the essential role interpreters' play as a bridge between a patient and their physician.
MENAFN2508201900630000ID1098922229
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.