Worcester Business Journal

14 Worcester Business Journal | November 25, 2019 | wbjournal.com F O C U S H E A L T H C A R E BY GRANT WELKER Worcester Business Journal News Editor UMass is getting more sophisticated with its medical interpretation services, as the population diversifies Interpreting medical needs A s the population in and around Worcester has diversified in recent years, with more newcomers not so fluent in English, the medical community has taken what was once almost an af- terthought – interpreter assistance – and made it an essential service. At UMass Memorial Medical Center's three Worcester campuses, the number of patients who don't speak English fluently has rose 22% in the past five years. Around a third of them, or about 50,000, ar- rive in the emergency depart- ment, when the need to quickly explain symptoms or a course of treatment may be most critical. Interpreter services have more than made up for that increase in patients speaking a foreign language, with the number of conversations aided by trans- lators – either in person, by phone or vid- eo – spiking by 32% in those five years. UMass' interpreter services depart- ment, which serves the University, Memorial and Hahnemann campuses, has grown to 34 staffers by proving its services aren't just a nice-to-have and aren't something that can simply be done by, say, a family member or friend, said Connie Camelo, the hospital's director of interpreter services. With interpreters who must pass a certification course ensuring they're medically proficient, the department has been able to reduce readmission rates – those who return within 30 days – for non-English speakers from 31% to 26% in a few months. ose who don't speak English as their primary language have typically lagged their native-English counterparts, who've had an average readmission rate of 19% at UMass. at gap is attributed histor- ically to either a misunderstanding in language or a lack of adequate under- standing of what a patient should do aer being discharged. "Premiums, co-pays, deductibles – we know how overwhelming this can be for the average American," said Elena Ferrantino, the site and business development manager at the Language Bank, an interpreter service provided by the Worcester human services agency Ascentria Care Alliance. "But this becomes a major challenge for those who don't speak the language, are not familiar with the U.S. healthcare system, and have different lifestyles and cultural backgrounds that may or may not have in- cluded preventative care," Ferrantino said. Number of Percentage of Language conversations all interpretations UMass Memorial interpretation needs UMass Memorial Medical Center has interpreters on staff who predominently speak seven languages, plus American Sign Language. A look at interpreting services for fiscal 2018: Source: UMass Memorial Medical Center PHOTOS/GRANT WELKER Spanish 131,611 61% Portuguese 27,056 12% Arabic 15,599 7% Vietnamese 13,250 6% Other languages 11,639 5% Albanian 7,971 4% Mandarin 4,480 2% Nepali 3,794 2% American Sign Language 2,382 1% Max Grecchi, the coordinator of education and training for interpreter services at UMass Memorial Medical Center, demonstrates how video interpreter services work with American Sign Language.

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