Language Line Provides a Lifeline

by Geri Koeppel 

Every 19 seconds, a legal immigrant enters the United States, and by 2043, minorities in the country will be the majority.

Many at some point will need help communicating in their adopted nation. Whether it’s at a hospital or an accident scene, in a bank or a courtroom, Louis F. Provenzano, Jr., believes they deserve to be heard.

“The difference between life and death, in many cases, is not being able to be understood,” said Provenzano, the president and chief operating officer of Language Line Services, Inc.

Language Line Services provides that lifeline with easy-to-access interpretation services via phone, video and face-to-face. The company, based in Monterey, Calif., recently opened a Tucson office as part of a national expansion.

Though it previously served the area with phone and video translation, the firm now provides on-site interpreters in Tucson as well. The goal is to have face-to-face interpreters in all major metropolitan areas of the county by the end of 2009.

Language Line Services is looking to hire 250 to 300 new employees – not contractors – in the Tucson market alone. It has a rigorous four-step recruiting process, and only one of every 12 candidates is hired. They’re continually tested and given professional development.

“We invest in them,” said Carter Davidson, business development manager for Language Line Services.

Another new development is the firm’s ability to provide Mexican Sign Language (Lengua de Señas Mexicana) by video feed. In a border city such as Tucson, this is crucial.

The company trains all employees through Language Line University. A select set of interpreters knows medical terminology, which prevents serious mistakes.

“It all comes down to patient safety,” Provenzano said.

At a demonstration of his company’s services in March, Provenzano cited a case of a hospital that had to pay a $71 million settlement because a Spanish-speaking man became paraplegic due to a misinterpretation.

Medical errors are the sixth-largest cause of death in the U.S., said Linda Joyce, a language access consultant and professional interpreter. And communication problems account for 65 percent of “sentinel events” in health care, or incidents with serious consequences.

Provenzano is a vanguard in pushing to create national certification for medical interpreters so these errors don’t occur. It’s difficult enough for patients to understand complex medical terms when they speak the language. Skilled interpreters can communicate more accurately than friends or family, and also allow patients their privacy.

Jonathan Hirsch, director of guest services and patient advocate at Holy Name Hospital in Teaneck, N.J., said using Language Line Services phone and video services has also been a great benefit to patients who need interpreters immediately.

In some cases, he said, “By the time the interpreter walked through the door, the person was in surgery or post-op.” Language Line Services “is able to bring interpreters and sign language interpreters bedside within a matter of minutes.”

This translates to savings, Hirsch added. Patients who have complications due to communication problems sometimes stay longer than insurance carriers or Medicare permit, or they don’t understand discharge information and must return.

Language Line Services charges on a per-usage basis for its phone and video interpreters, often a big savings over a face-to-face interpreter who is paid regardless of the time spent interpreting.

Hirsch cited a case where an interpreter was needed only at certain times in a patient’s care, so the hospital paid only for the time used rather than hiring someone to stay for the 10-hour operation. The cost for the Language Line Services video interpreter was $150.75, rather than $1,500 for face-to-face.

A special mobile video system is set up to allow the patient, provider and interpreter to speak freely. The video unit is mounted on a wheeled stand with wide casters for access throughout a building, even over elevator thresholds.

Pat Joy, manager of the 911 call center for the Pima County Sheriff’s Office, said they get 150 to 200 calls a month in which the speaker has limited or no English proficiency. While 99 percent of those callers need a Spanish interpreter, she said, she also gets calls from speakers of Cantonese, Mandarin and Somali. Language Line Services provides phone interpreters in more than 175 languages.

Of course, there are times when face-to-face communication is morally necessary. For instance, if a patient must be told he has cancer, it’s inappropriate to do that through a video feed. Language Line Services trains employees to provide the highest quality of customer service and professionalism so patients are always comfortable, even in difficult situations.

In addition to health care settings, Language Line Services is used by government agencies, utilities, financial institutions and more. Whether they’re helping to deliver a baby or assisting a couple sign the mortgage papers for their new home, “our interpreters see it all,” Provenzano said.

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Geri Koeppel is a freelance writer based in Phoenix, Arizona.

Her work has been published in Phoenix Magazine, the Arizona Republic, the East Valley/Scottsdale Tribune, South Mountain District News and several other local newspapers and magazines. She has also written marketing materials for Ford, the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce and local business owners. She holds a B.A. in journalism and an M.A. in communications from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, and is on the board of directors of the Valley of the Sun Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.