What would it feel like if you were in need of medical treatment whilst traveling to a different language-speaking country? Unless you know the foreign language of the country you’ve traveled to, there’s a risk of not getting the proper analysis due to the language barrier. Most countries need to adapt the strategy of having translated healthcare services. Health professionals can translate a video for each service as a starting point.
Since all possibilities can happen *Covid 19*, you can never predict when you will need medical assistance abroad. The world is now a big open space. With the advanced technologies, development, and possibility to travel at a low cost, you can reach whatever place you would like to visit. But that also means that you need to make sure you’re prepared for any unexpected circumstances.
There is also the fact that many people travel across the world to receive better treatment in the most advanced healthcare facilities. They travel because the healthcare system in their own country doesn't usually contain enough equipment for their conditions. Others travel to check different options for medical surgeries. Nonetheless, there's a huge need for translation services within the healthcare industry.
Proper diagnosis relies on better communication and clear understanding. People who can’t speak a foreign language, probably face challenges when explaining their illness. The lack of communication can seriously result in different diagnoses even with detailed checkups. In some cases, patients are accompanied by family members who can communicate in simple language. However, there is a 50% chance of getting misdiagnosed.
A method study was conducted at Université de Saint-Boniface on the impact of language barriers on quality of care and patient safety for official language minority Francophones in Canada. It was also published in the Journal of Patient Experience.
The study indicates how patients with language challenges received a poorer patient assessment, misdiagnosis, and delayed treatment.
It also shows how the whole process relies on Google translate and ad hoc as a medium to help with translation. For facilities that actually provide interpreters, the study states that these interpreters are usually untrained. Proof highlighting the danger related to this practice was provided. Other practices were recorded such as incomplete understanding of the patient's condition and prescribed treatment.
Healthcare facilities in every country worldwide need to adopt policies that can protect foreign patients’ rights to access healthcare in its right form. Along with these policies, these facilities can create projects that can add value to their space and help people at the same time. Videos for example are one of the top mediums consumed by all ages.
Therefore, it can be beneficial to create explainer videos to guide people on what exactly they’re looking for in every language possible. These videos will serve them when they are first admitted to the facility as they will contain general information they need to access different zones. They will have to rely on these videos for information. Another medium would be having a survey with important basic information for patients to fill in their native language for a more accurate diagnosis.
It’s also helpful to designate a professional medical interpreter to help during medical checkups.
As many countries have become more diverse each year with the increase in immigration and tourism, medical translation is also bound to rise. By 2024, jobs in health translation and related sectors will see an increase of 29% according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. So it’s only evident that translation in healthcare facilities is seeing a change. Many healthcare specialists are focusing now more than any other time on the localization of medical information. It's important to not underestimate human lives by downplaying the importance of accurate medical translation.
If we take how the global pandemic affected everyone at the beginning of 2020, then we surely understand the importance of transmitting precise information in different languages. Health organizations agree that to better control and contain the pandemic, the population needs to receive the correct information. Since it’s a global pandemic, then it was critical to translate the message to all languages possible to curb outbreaks.
Therefore, translating a video into multiple languages was key to spreading information effectively. With the incredible amount of information and content ideas to work on, the use of automated systems comes to the surface again as the best AI practice. Translating a video automatically can be the fastest, and most cost-effective method available in comparison to human translation.
Adopting automated translation to translate a video has many benefits. Because the process of automation can reduce the number of human translators and the time spent translating, the process is usually less expensive. You can then use the saved income to hire a professional health translator to accompany patients inside checkups.
To translate a video also means that administrative staff won’t have to leave their position to assist people during their medical examinations. Usually in a health facility, whoever is in charge actually assigns a staff member, who is fluent in 2 or more languages, to take on interpretation tasks. Staff members tend to struggle between their own practices and working on translating for other patients.
Human resource, in this case, is not efficiently utilized and can hinder the progress of the organization. Translating systems are then used to save time and money. There is also the fear of inaccuracy when working with human lives. Errors in a translation copy can result in serious misdiagnosis and inaccurate healthcare records. For this particular case, automated transcription and translation are useful. You can use an automated transcription tool to generate your document and then translate it.
Video, a powerful medium to capture and hold people’s attention, can serve the healthcare industry in many ways. The versatility of videos allows them to be used in different concepts and scenarios.
Both examinations and translation rely first and foremost on communication. Doctors need to communicate with patients during examinations. Healthcare translators also need to communicate what the doctor advised in the patient’s native language. To prevent any mistakes, it is better to translate a video showcasing different aspects of the healthcare organization.
Videos are also great to distribute to different people across different social platforms. You can insert videos in many areas of healthcare facilities. Not only patients but visitors and staff, in general, can take advantage of these translated videos.
Hospitals and healthcare organizations should create an explainer video as a welcoming gesture for patients regardless of whether it should be translated or not. Instead of having different writing materials or displaying unrelated resources, it will be useful to create a welcoming video of all necessary information and contact numbers for people to see and refer back to.
For people with language difficulties, having these welcoming videos in different languages and allowing patients to choose their native language speaks volumes about the quality of examination they are about to receive.
You can translate a video and place it near the entrance or waiting room next to patients. This will minimize human contact and give an overview of what type of treatment the facility is handling. You can also display multiple videos one at a time in different languages for all visitors. These types of videos can be also added to the facility’s website for easy access.
Another useful type of video once translated is a video introduction of doctors, nurses, and general staff. You may wonder why to dedicate a video to show the staff as it may seem unnecessary. But remember, the whole point of having these videos is for people who can’t speak the language and find it hard to book a certain doctor. Some patients don’t even know what specialties are available in a healthcare facility. Therefore, they tend to lose time and money trying to look for the right doctor.
This exact information can be added to the welcome video as well. Any additional information such as Interviews and detailed descriptions of each doctor’s specialty for people to be aware of is serviceable. Not only doctors' information, but these videos can also showcase patient testimonials in order to provide credibility and ease the mind of newcomers.
People who speak a foreign language and need to receive examinations, often feel secluded and strange; with mixed emotions between fear and uncertainty. Yet, to translate a video of past patients’ testimonials can actually provide relief.
To avoid any confusion trying to communicate to foreign patients about the different corners of the facility, you can create a video and translate its content of what the location looks like. Patients who are unfamiliar with the place but also struggle to communicate during their stay can enjoy the tour. During the virtual tour, the narrator can also explain the procedures for each specialty. It can be relieving for patients to understand what to look for during their appointment. They need to know what will be happening exactly during the examination in case the doctor is not fluent in their native language or the interpreter is not available.
Probably the most viewed videos ever. Patients with no language knowledge whatsoever would appreciate having their questions answered in their native language. Frequently asked questions video can serve this purpose. Healthcare organizations can gather information based on a survey on the kind of questions people usually ask upon their first visit or during their checkups.
The reason to translate a video with all the questions is to give people an opportunity to prepare themselves before visiting any facility. You can use these videos to educate people and provide necessary visuals as well.
You can also share general health advice in these types of videos or create a separate one detailing the general wellbeing of patients. Videos are great to share information. So what better way to share health advice than using video and translating it for maximum outreach.
Health centers, hospitals, healthcare organizations, and facilities are among the top places people dread to visit. It’s true that patient psychology is already affected due to illness. But the actual atmosphere of health facilities can also contribute to the general feeling of unpleasantness.
When sharing information through an entertaining video or having a joyful voice to translate a video, you actually improve their experience and it can decrease waiting time.
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