ArticleJournal of general internal medicine2007
Assessing dual-role staff-interpreter linguistic competency in an integrated healthcare system.
Article in Journal of general internal medicine, 2007. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 37 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
37 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 92 citations in OpenAlex.
- Nurses' Experiences of Working With Healthcare Interpreters When Caring for Patients With Limited Proficiency in the Primary Language: A Qualitative Systematic Review.Journal of clinical nursing · 2025Pooled it
- Reliability and Validity of Patient Ratings and Clinician Self-Report in the Assessment of Clinician Non-English Language Skills.Journal of general internal medicine · 2026Observational
- "Ich verstehe es nicht": the necessity of integrating professional interpretation into the German healthcare system.International journal for equity in health · 2026Article
- Use of Untrained Interpreters in the Inpatient Setting: What Does the Record Show?Journal of general internal medicine · 2026Article
- Use of Untrained Interpreters in the Inpatient Setting: What Does the Record Show?Journal of general internal medicine · 2026Article
- Multilingualism in mental health care - a long way to professionalism.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Implementing system-wide digital medical interpretation: a framework for healthcare organizations.JAMIA open · 2025Article
- Medical Interpreting in Primary Care: Design and Validation of a Replicable Training Program.Annals of family medicine · 2025Article
- Research on Patients with Non-English Language Preference: More of the Same.Journal of general internal medicine · 2025Article
- Language and cultural concordance to promote equity in organ transplantation for Hispanics with limited English proficiency.Current opinion in organ transplantation · 2025Review
- Article
- Language-Specific Challenges and Solutions for Equitable Telemedicine Implementation in the Primary Care Safety Net During COVID-19.Journal of general internal medicine · 2023Article
- Spanish-Speaking Patients Have Limited Access Scheduling Outpatient Orthopaedic Appointments Compared With English-Speaking Patients Across the United States.Arthroscopy, sports medicine, and rehabilitation · 2023Article
- Surgical Residents as Certified Bilingual Speakers: A Quality Improvement Initiative.Joint Commission journal on quality and patient safety · 2020Article
- Chronic Noncancer Pain Management and Systemic Racism: Time to Move Toward Equal Care Standards.Journal of pain research · 2020Article
- Non-Medical Radiography Staff Experiences in Inter-Professional Communication: A Swedish Qualitative Focus Group Interview Study.Journal of multidisciplinary healthcare · 2020Article
- Factors Associated With Accuracy of Self-Assessment Compared With Tested Non-English Language Proficiency Among Primary Care Providers.Medical care · 2019Article
- Language assistance for limited English proficiency patients in a public ED: determining the unmet need.BMC health services research · 2019Article
- Chuukese Patients, Dual Role Interpreters, and Confidentiality: Exploring Clinic Interpretation Services for Reproductive Health Patients.Hawai'i journal of medicine & public health : a journal of Asia Pacific Medicine & Public Health · 2018Article
- Professional Medical Interpreters Influence the Quality of Acute Ischemic Stroke Care for Patients Who Speak Languages Other than English.Journal of the American Heart Association · 2017Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundInterpreter services for medical care increase physician-patient communication and safety, yet a "formal certification" process to demonstrate interpreter competence does not exist. Testing and training is left to individual health care facilities nationwide. Bilingual staff are often used to interpret, without any assessment of their skills. Assessing interpreters' linguistic competence and setting standards for testing is a priority.
objectiveTo assess dual-role staff interpreter linguistic competence in an integrated health care system to determine skill qualification to work as medical interpreters.
designDual-role staff interpreters voluntarily completed a linguistic competency assessment using a test developed by a language school to measure comprehension, completeness, and vocabulary through written and oral assessment in English and the second language. Pass levels were predetermined by school as not passing, basic (limited ability to read, write, and speak English and the second language) and medical interpreter level. Five staff-interpreter focus groups discussed experiences as interpreters and with language test.
resultsA total of 840 dual-role staff interpreters were tested for Spanish (75%), Chinese (12%), and Russian (5%) language competence. Most dual-role interpreters serve as administrative assistants (39%), medical assistants (27%), and clinical staff (17%). Two percent did not pass, 21% passed at basic level, 77% passed at medical interpreter level. Staff that passed at the basic level was prone to interpretation errors, including omissions and word confusion. Focus groups revealed acceptance of exam process and feelings of increased validation in interpreter role.
conclusionsWe found that about 1 in 5 dual-role staff interpreters at a large health care organization had insufficient bilingual skills to serve as interpreters in a medical encounter. Health care organizations that depend on dual-role staff interpreters should consider assessing staff English and second language skills.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.