A Medical Translation Assistant for Non-English-Speaking Caregivers of Children With Special Health Care Needs: Proposal for a Scalable and Interoperable Mobile App.

Emre Sezgin,Garey Noritz,Yungui Huang,Jeffrey Hoffman

doi:10.2196/21038

Abstract

BackgroundCommunication and comprehension of medical information are known barriers in health communication and equity, especially for non–English-speaking caregivers of children with special health care needs.ObjectiveThe objective of this proposal was to develop an interoperable and scalable medical translation app for non–English-speaking caregivers to facilitate the conversation between provider and caregiver/patient.MethodsWe employed user-centered and participatory design methods to understand the problems and develop a solution by engaging the stakeholder team (including caregivers, physicians, researchers, clinical informaticists, nurses, developers, nutritionists, pharmacists, and interpreters) and non–English-speaking caregiver participants.ResultsConsidering the lack of interpreter service accessibility and advancement in translation technology, our team will develop and test an integrated, multimodal (voice-interactive and text-based) patient portal communication and translation app to enable non–English-speaking caregivers to communicate with providers using their preferred languages. For this initial prototype, we will focus on the Spanish language and Spanish-speaking families to test technical feasibility and evaluate usability.ConclusionsOur proposal brings a unique perspective to medical translation and communication between caregiver and provider by (1) enabling voice entry and transcription in health care communications, (2) integrating with patient portals to facilitate caregiver and provider communications, and (3) adopting a translation verification model to improve accuracy of artificial intelligence–facilitated translations. Expected outcomes include improved health communications, literacy, and health equity. In addition, data points will be collected to improve autotranslation services in medical communications. We believe our proposed solution is affordable, interoperable, and scalable for health systems.

Highlights

BackgroundChildren with special health care needs have a high number of hospitalizations and require more specialized services
Our proposal brings a unique perspective to medical translation and communication between caregiver and provider by (1) enabling voice entry and transcription in health care communications, (2) integrating with patient portals to facilitate caregiver and provider communications, and (3) adopting a translation verification model to improve accuracy of artificial intelligence–facilitated translations
It is possible that non–English-speaking caregivers might not fully understand the information provided during transition of care and might not feel comfortable engaging in a conversation with the clinical team

Summary

Introduction

BackgroundChildren with special health care needs have a high number of hospitalizations and require more specialized services. Due to the complexity of their conditions, transitioning children with special health care needs from inpatient care to continuing therapy in the home setting is often challenging. It is possible that non–English-speaking caregivers might not fully understand the information provided during transition of care and might not feel comfortable engaging in a conversation with the clinical team. It is not common for translated medication instructions and care plans to be provided in written format, especially for less common languages. Communication and comprehension of medical information are known barriers in health communication and equity, especially for non–English-speaking caregivers of children with special health care needs

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Results

Discussion

Conclusion