TY - JOUR
T1 - The impact of medical interpreter services on the quality of health care
T2 - A systematic review
AU - Flores, Glenn
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2011 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2005/6
Y1 - 2005/6
N2 - Twenty-one million Americans are limited in English proficiency (LEP), but little is known about the effect of medical interpreter services on health care quality. A systematic literature review was conducted on the impact of interpreter services on quality of care. Five database searches yielded 2,640 citations and a final database of 36 articles, after applying exclusion criteria. Multiple studies document that quality of care is compromised when LEP patients need but do not get interpreters. LEP patients' quality of care is inferior, and more interpreter errors occur with untrained ad hoc interpreters. Inadequate interpreter services can have serious consequences for patients with mental disorders. Trained professional interpreters and bilingual health care providers positively affect LEP patients' satisfaction, quality of care, and outcomes. Evidence suggests that optimal communication, patient satisfaction, and outcomes and the fewest interpreter errors occur when LEP patients have access to trained professional interpreters or bilingual providers.
AB - Twenty-one million Americans are limited in English proficiency (LEP), but little is known about the effect of medical interpreter services on health care quality. A systematic literature review was conducted on the impact of interpreter services on quality of care. Five database searches yielded 2,640 citations and a final database of 36 articles, after applying exclusion criteria. Multiple studies document that quality of care is compromised when LEP patients need but do not get interpreters. LEP patients' quality of care is inferior, and more interpreter errors occur with untrained ad hoc interpreters. Inadequate interpreter services can have serious consequences for patients with mental disorders. Trained professional interpreters and bilingual health care providers positively affect LEP patients' satisfaction, quality of care, and outcomes. Evidence suggests that optimal communication, patient satisfaction, and outcomes and the fewest interpreter errors occur when LEP patients have access to trained professional interpreters or bilingual providers.
KW - Communication barriers
KW - Language
KW - Patient satisfaction
KW - Physician-patient relations
KW - Quality of health care
KW - Translating
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U2 - 10.1177/1077558705275416
DO - 10.1177/1077558705275416
M3 - Review article
C2 - 15894705
AN - SCOPUS:18644363888
VL - 62
SP - 255
EP - 299
JO - Medical Care Research and Review
JF - Medical Care Research and Review
SN - 1077-5587
IS - 3
ER -