In the medical field, duty of care and accurate communication are vital for delivering appropriate health care. Practitioners who fail to communicate effectively or gain informed consent from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse clients face being held liable for negligence.

Ignoring the language barrier or relying on unqualified individuals can lead to shortcomings in medical care, such as prescribing drugs to which the patient is allergic or misunderstandings about post-operative care requirements. At a minimum, this can lead to additional medical appointments; at worst it can lead to severe complications or even death. Both the health practitioner and the facility where they work may be liable in these situations.

ONCALL can provide qualified interpreters with extensive experience in the health field, for on-site or telephone interpreting consultations in over 90 languages. Translating brochures, care instructions, complaint forms and customer charters into your clients’ languages can also help to deliver superior customer service and better health care, as well as protecting your interests.

ONCALL’s current clients include:

• General Practitioners
• Hospitals
• Psychiatrists
• Psychologists
• Community Health Centres
• Maternal and Child Health Centres
• Rehabilitation providers
• Physiotherapists
• Royal District Nurses
• Social Workers and other allied health professionals

Services that health professionals find useful include:

• On-site interpreting
• Telephone interpreting
• Translation of documents relating to a patient’s medical history that are written in another language
• Translation of research papers and texts that are of a scientific, technical or medical nature
• Programs in cross-cultural training and working with interpreters