Interpreting in the Emergency Room

Medical interpreters play a crucial role in facilitating communication between healthcare providers and patients in the emergency room, especially during dramatic and high-stress cases. Their presence helps ensure accurate and effective communication, which is essential for delivering appropriate and timely medical care.  

In this module, we will discuss the importance of trained medical interpreters in the Emergency Room, the process of the ER visit from evaluation, to triage, to admittance and/or discharge.  We will also look at the most common ER visits and the challenges medical interpreters may face in these encounters.  Students will also be introduced to the common medical equipment used in the ER along with the common medical terminology.