Storm Lake is known to be a growing and culturally diverse town in Iowa. It is part of everyday life to go to school, work, or shop around town and interact with people who do not have English as their first language. As the community hospital, Buena Vista Regional Medical Center (BVRMC) works hard to provide top quality care to everyone no matter their language skills.
Some estimate that there are over 25 languages spoken by citizens in the community of 12,000 people. New cultural groups come to find work in the various meat packing and agricultural industries. These groups allow Storm Lake’s community to continue to grow, but can present a communication challenge, especially in time sensitive situations in the emergency room.
“When people come into the facility, they are scared and hurting, and a language barrier is one more step that hinders us from figuring out what is going on and how to help,” says Dr. Garrett Feddersen, ER Medical Director at BVRMC.
In December BVRMC started using a video remote interpreting (VRI) service offered by one of the largest and fastest growing video interpreting services in the world, Stratus Video. This video service allows the patient to see a live interpreter on a portable tablet screen talking directly to them and allows the BVRMC care provider to make sure the patient understands and feels comfortable with the care they need.
Interpreting services are free to all BVRMC patients. The hospital is starting out with eight portable units spread throughout the organization. More units may be added as the staff evaluates patient needs.
Before Stratus Video’s VRI technology, staff utilized on-site interpreters and an all audio interpreting service over the telephone. Staff was limited to locations with a phone and had to work around cords, which could be challenging since patients are often lying down or not able to sit normally in a chair.
BVRMC still provides the option of on-site interpreters, but demand and language need can cause a challenge. Now in less than a minute, staff can access video interpreters who are right in the room with the patient and care team speaking Spanish, Hmong, Laotian, Thai, Karen, Sudanese or many other various languages.
“It is easy to use and before you know it we have an interpreter. Most of the time we have a visual – where the patient can actually see the interpreter on the screen – it is almost like having them right in the emergency room,” says Joan Prach, Director of ER/Ambulance.
Health care terms can be complex for anyone to understand. It’s important for patients and their family members to understand their diagnosis and what the care team is asking them to do when they leave the hospital.
“I had a patient who had recently had a miscarriage; that is a tough conversation to have when both parties don’t speak the same language. It is amazing how much better the conversation was with the Stratus, it helps eliminate misunderstandings and is much better to convey a sense of empathy and understanding,” says Dr. Garrett Feddersen.
Status interpreters are all medically trained and take the time to make sure patients understand what is happening medically and what they need to do. The video interpreter can bring up a digital white board to clarify instructions.
“Patients love the video service. It is much easier to interact when they can see the interpreter, the interpreter can read body language and inflection of the language better as well,” says Dr. Garrett Feddersen.
There are additional features where patients can ask to be anonymous, therefore creating a space where the interpreter is not able to see the patient but the patient can still see the interpreter. This allows patients privacy during sensitive testing. Video interpreters can even put fun images on the screen to entertain children in the room.
Stratus Video is the leader in video interpreting and averages 80,000 video calls a day, which is 50 times higher than their closest competitor. 100% of their interpreters are medically qualified. They offer 19 languages in video, over 250 languages in audio, and certified deaf interpreting.