久久亚洲国产成人影院-久久亚洲国产的中文-久久亚洲国产高清-久久亚洲国产精品-亚洲图片偷拍自拍-亚洲图色视频

您現在的位置: > Language Tips > Audio & Video > Normal Speed News  
 





 
Language barriers impact health care
[ 2006-08-04 08:57 ]

Many immigrants to the United States may be getting inadequate medical care because of language barriers between patients and medical professionals. But some health facilities are working to add more multilingual staff and reduce errors based on miscommunication.

More than 22 million people who live in the United States don't speak or understand English very well. And that can be deadly. In a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Dr. Glenn Flores highlights some cases where language barriers prevented patients from communicating with health care providers -- with serious consequences.

Flores recalls one incident in which English-speaking paramedics thought a Spanish-speaking man was suffering from a drug overdose. "He was in the hospital basically for two days being worked up for drug abuse," Flores says. "They finally did a head C-T scan and realized he had had a major bleed into his brain, probably originating from the rupture of an artery in his brain. He ended up being quadriplegic and he got a $71 million settlement award from the hospital."

Flores, a professor at the Medical College of Wisconsin says that despite examples like that, the majority of U.S. health care facilities still do not have trained interpreters on site. But he acknowledges that increasing numbers of health care workers are bilingual, and that more clinics and hospitals do make sure their staff and patients understand each other.

The Tinno families get into the waiting room at the Sixteenth Street Community Health Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Some 40%, or about 7000 of the patients who were seen there last year spoke little or no English. Fortunately for them, of the 30 doctors and nurses at the clinic, 28 also speak Spanish.

After greeting several members of the Caseas family,doctor Ricas examines their young daughter Gabrielle. Doctor Ricas says being able to speak to Mrs. Caseas in her native Spanish means he can discuss Gabrielle's condition - and treatment - in much greater depth. "It's always good to ask a few extra questions," he explains, "like why this is important for you and what have you heard and what do other people say about this? Sometimes that helps you understand what their real concerns are. But it's difficult to get into that detail if you don't speak the language."

The Sixteenth Street Clinic is expanding. So its directors are in the process of hiring more staff who are bilingual now, or who commit to learning Spanish. Clinic vice-president, Dr. Julie Schuller, says new hires are told that by speaking to patients in their own language, they can provide the highest quality care. "By providing high quality care, we are avoiding errors, we are avoiding malpractice suits," she says. "The main focus for us is the high quality. What [follows] from that [i.e. avoiding errors] is important too, but we're focused on providing the best quality we can provide."

Schuller says it's frustrating to go into medical facilities and see patients who are not being understood. So she urges other hospitals and clinics to look into adding interpreters to their staff, or at least to make use of translator hotlines that can be called day or night.

But Dana Richardson of the Wisconsin Hospital Association says many facilities are worried about the additional cost. "What we have seen in the state of Wisconsin overall is an increasing number of minority-ethnic groups coming in, and so it's becoming a greater cost for the health community to provide these services." Richardson says translator hotlines can cost at least $50 per hour. She says while hospitals recognize the value of having a multi-lingual flexibility, most simply cannot afford it.

The author of the language barrier study, Glenn Flores, suggests that U.S. medical schools could require their students to take medical Spanish, Chinese or other appropriate language. But for now, the number of immigrants is outpacing the health care industry's ability to provide adequate care in a language they can understand.

Vocabulary:              

quadriplegic : 四肢癱瘓的


(來源:VOA  英語點津姍姍編輯


 

 
 

 

 

 
 

48小時內最熱門

     

本頻道最新推薦

     
  Fulbright exchange program turns 60
  Experience:the first American space walk
  Bird flu renews fear among Thai tour operators
  靜謐憂傷:A place nearby
  Japan imports U.S. beef again






主站蜘蛛池模板: 毛片在线看免费 | 亚洲欧美自拍一区 | 色播亚洲视频在线观看 | 亚洲国产精品一区二区九九 | 日韩中文字幕一在线 | 欧美一级xxxx俄罗斯一级 | 亚洲精品色综合色在线观看 | 香蕉视频黄色在线观看 | 欧美69| 国产理论在线观看 | 91精品国产免费久久久久久青草 | 国产精品视频久久 | 亚洲精品一区二区四季 | 免费看成人毛片日本久久 | 久久精品亚洲精品一区 | 99久久精品费精品国产一区二区 | 在线观看视频99 | 成人午夜两性视频免费看 | 国产成人精品久久 | 欧美午夜在线观看理论片 | 亚洲欧美国产日韩天堂在线视 | 久久久国产99久久国产久 | 99国产精品久久久久久久成人热 | 香蕉成人在线 | 在线观看一级片 | 欧美高清性色生活片免费观看 | 另类视频综合 | 日韩三级在线观看视频 | 91久久99| 久久久久日韩精品无 | 国产高清一区二区三区 | 日韩一级性生活片 | 国产在线播放一区二区 | 国产香蕉尹人综合在线观 | 中文字幕成人免费视频 | 久久国产乱子伦精品免费不卡 | 日韩精品亚洲人成在线观看 | 日本三级一区二区三区 | 免费国产成人高清无线看软件 | 114一级毛片免费 | 99在线免费视频 |