Medical Student Research Forum Posters

• In the United States, over 25 million individuals over the age of 5 speak English less than ‘very well’ with limited English proficiency (LEP). Of this group, more than 16 million individuals identify their preferred language as Spanish or Spanish Creole.

• Among Latino immigrants, those with LEP are less likely to receive mental healthcare services as compared to those with English proficiency (EP).

• A variety of Federal and state policies, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, require that interpreter services be available to all LEP individuals.

• Professional interpreters are widely considered the best means of providing linguistically and culturally competent healthcare to patients with LEP. Use of interpretation services is proven more accurate, however, when providers are made to simplify their speech.

• This simplification includes shortening of phrases and avoidance of complex language, including idioms, jargon, humor and acronyms.

• Bilingual providers offer an alternative option to professional interpreters and recent research has found that language concordance between provider and patient can lead to improved healthcare outcomes.

• Until now, automated machine translation (AMT) has not been explored as an alternative option to professional interpreting services.