PHOENIX, Feb. 1, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- Medical interpreters from 25 children's hospitals from across the nation will gather at Phoenix Children's Hospital Feb. 6-10 to participate in training sessions designed to improve communication and safety for the Hispanic population in their service areas. The program, which began in 2001 for the Arizona medical community, got a boost late in 2005 with a $250,000 grant from Ronald McDonald House Charities, Inc., enabling Phoenix Children's to expand the current program nationally.
"Nearly every hospital receives patients with a limited English proficiency, but less than 25 percent of the country's hospitals are staffed with skilled and properly trained interpreters," said Barbara Rayes, master trainer for the project and translation services and language education coordinator at Phoenix Children's Hospital. "It's not enough to be a good medical interpreter, other issues such as culture and ethics are always in play."
Twenty-five instructor candidates from hospitals including nationally-recognized Children's Hospital Boston, Children's National Medical Center (Washington, D.C.) and Texas Children's Hospital (Houston, Tex.) will participate in 60 hours of training to instruct them how to teach bilingual health care workers medical terms, interpreting protocol, multicultural understanding, leadership and teamwork. Rayes said training bilingual interpreters is an urgent health and safety issue and is critical because it increases efficiency and decreases medical errors.
"Training the teachers to instruct others will maximize the benefits of the program and the number of teachers across the country, improving care overall," said Rayes.
The Spanish-speaking population at Phoenix Children's Hospital has grown steadily over the past three years. More than 35 percent of the hospital's patients were self-identified as Hispanic or Latino in 2005. Since 2001, Phoenix Children's has trained nearly 800 Arizonans in medical terminology, interpreting ethics, leadership, cultural differences and team building. Four years ago, Phoenix Children's and the University of Arizona Hispanic Center of Excellence started the joint training program with a grant and the goal to improve the quality of interpretation in Maricopa County. Rayes developed the program to train bilingual speakers to be medical interpreters and teachers.
This year's training will begin Feb. 6 at Phoenix Children's Hospital with an address by Phoenix Children's Hospital's President and CEO Robert Meyer. It will conclude Feb. 10 with an all-day event at the Flinn Foundation, when each instructor student will present their capstone presentation.
Phoenix Children's Hospital is Arizona's leader in pediatric care and is one of the 10 largest free-standing children's hospitals in the nation. The most comprehensive array of pediatric specialists in the State practice at this one organization. The outstanding clinical expertise, as well as high patient volume, and an unwavering commitment to caring only for children, all contribute to Children's leadership position. For information about Phoenix Children's, visit the Hospital's award-winning website at www.phoenixchildrens.com.
Editor's Note: Media are welcome to attend the conference and interviews can be arranged for Phoenix Children's staff, as well as attending interpreters. To arrange an interview please call Jane Walton at (602) 546-5871 or Phoenix Children's Hospital Public Relations at (602) 546-5870.