Letting your patients know about language assistance

I was at  Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children and throughout the hospital you  will find the picture I took.

It is an effective example of posting multilingual signs to inform patients and families that language assistance is available at no cost. It is appropriately colorful and bright for a children’s hospital. It is located at several entry points and check-in/registration desks. I also took notice of the order of Arabic and Urdu, left to right, instead of how we read in the English language – right to left.

Hospitals and health care facilities must provide language access services to individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP), this describes an individual with a limited ability to speak, see, read, write, hear or understand the English language.  Meeting the language needs of patients and families is part of delivering culturally competent care and required by federal regulations.

Examples of communication assistance include interpreter services (in-person, phone, and video remote), magnifying glasses, and teletypewriter (TTY) phones.