Benefits of Bilingual Services in Community Health - Term Paper Example

Benefits of Bilingual Services in Community Health Introduction Bilingual skills are essential in the provision of healthcare services. The usefulness of the communication between patients and physicians rely on the lingual knowledge of the physician. In multiethnic societies, knowledge of two or more languages becomes integral in ensuring effective communication. Communication is important in the diagnosis, prognosis, treatment and the material preparation processes of the healthcare service dispensation. In every case, bilingual expertise helps the parties concerned improve the effectiveness of the services rendered. According to Makarsssyus and Friedman (2005) cosmopolitan societies such as towns and cities have diverse populations since people from various cultural and ethnic backgrounds move to such areas in search of employment. In such societies, medical practitioners require understanding of various languages in order to safeguard the quality of the services they offer. In other disciplines of the practice such as psychiatry, the entire process of attending a patient relies on the quality of the communication between the providers and he patients. Internship I serve as an intern at Chinatown Public Heath Centered located in the City of Sam Francisco, 1490 Mason Street, San Francisco, CA 94133. I work under (insert) and this has helped me in aligning my career interest by being able to serve a linguistically diverse population. My work here involves dealing with immigrants and this has reinforced to me the essence of Multilanguage mastery as a method to spearhead better healthcare services in such environments. Method As an intern in Chinatown Public Heath Centered, my roles include translating the medical materials of first Aid and CPR learning materials from Cantonese to Mandarin and also from Mandarin to Cantonese. My other roles include updating information on client and assisting the health department staff keep their database current. I also participate in making the learning materials available and useful to the delivery of the services in the centre. Literature Review Literature has concerned itself with investigating the effects of bilingual knowledge on delivery of healthcare in multiethnic societies. For instance, the National Health and Medical Research Council (2009) investigated the way a physicians’ understanding of multiethnic culture and language affects the ability of such a doctor to deliver services. According to his study, it was found that in multiethnic societies, healthcare stuff who are able to integrate cultural understanding in their service were better able to serve their patients. Betancourt, Green & Carrillo, 2002) investigated this issue and argued the cultural competence, a part of which is multilingual expertise, was necessary for physicians to perform in multiethnic societies. At the same time, Acton (2012) identified that there is a need for healthcare practitioners to have a better understanding of diverse culture and language. The book looks at the implication of multiethnic communities on the delivery of healthcare. The study identifies the necessity of healthcare practitioners to be able to understand not only various languages but also culture. The study identified that language is a major part of culture and that culture in turn affects the heath, both physiological and psychological health (mental) of the patient. In this study, it was clear that that those psychiatrists who were well versed with cultural and language were able to interact with the patients in a more meaningful way, thus affecting the way healthcare delivery is done. Eisenberg (2012) also tacked the issue of language in the healthcare environment and discussed the rule of lingual efficiency in the prescription of medicine. Like the other studies in the same discipline, the study identified that understanding of more than one language helped the physicians in delivering better healthcare in multiethnic societies. Analysis Chinese immigrants are many in America and their linguistic needs in eminent. There are more than 400,000 Chinese Americans, and more continue to get to American. California is a hotspot for Chinese immigrants in the United States, mostly due to its economic and technological advances. Yet, most of these Chinese immigrants are not well versed in English and only speak Cantonese or Mandarin depending on whether they come from mainland China or Hong Kong. For these immigrants to be able to get quality healthcare, there is a need for them the healthcare sector to be able to get a way to ensure there is no language barrier between the immigrants and the healthcare service delivery Robinson (2002). Just as the literature indicated, my internship has also showed me that there is a correlation between healthcare delivery and linguistic understanding. My work at the Chinatown Public Health Center helped to be able to see firsthand how language and communication between the care-givers and the patients can be a fundamental factor to determent he health outcomes. Serving at the Chinatown Public Health Center also revealed that culture, not just language was an important factor with regard to the way these immigrants receive healthcare. Understanding of not just language of these immigrants but also their culture turned out to be crucial part of the delivery of healthcare to them. As Bischoff (2006) says, most of these immigrants are affected by their culture with regard to what they eat, their lifestyle and what they believe about medicine. As a healthcare official, understanding this was a very important part of delivering healthcare to this people. This principle of healthcare is also predicated in the fact that healthcare delivery is more than just taking care of the physiological needs of the patient. Most of the immigrants which I served at the centre had not only linguistic but also cultural differences that made it harder for them to be served well without someone understanding these differences. Conclusion It is evident from literature that cultural competence and multilingual knowledge is a vital aspect of delivering healthcare to culturally diverse communities. In this regard, it sis necessary for policy makers to understand this and make sure that both cultural competency and lingual knowledge are incorporated in the process of making healthcare more accessible to people. It is also necessary to understand that the world is now more connected and many parts of the world are receiving immigrants from all over the world. Incorporating these issues in the process of delivering healthcare is a necessary part of improving the healthcare in many healthcare centers. References Acton, Q. (2012). Issues in Clinical Psychology, Psychiatry, and Counseling: 2011 Edition. Atlanta, GA: Scholarly Editions. Betancourt, J. G. (October 2002). Cultural competence in health care: emerging frameworks and practical approaches. New York City, NY: The Commonwealth Fund. Bischoff, A. (2006). Caring for Migrant and Minority Patients in European Hospitals: A Review of Effective Interventions. New York, NY: SFM. Eisenberg, A. (2012). Prescriptive Communication for the Healthcare Provider. London, UK: Trafford Publishing. Makaryus, A.N. & Friedman, E.A. (2005). Patients Understanding of heir Treatment Plans and Diagnosis at Discharge. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 80 (8), PP. 991-994 National Heath and Medical Research Council. (2009). Cultural competency in health: A guide for policy, partnerships and participation. Sydney, AU: National Heath and Medical Research Council. Robinson, M. (2002). Communication and Health in a Multi-ethnic Society. Bristol, UK: Policy Press. Read More