All patients have a right to the best medical care from their providers. Barriers with languages can delay
proper care and increase the risk of harm to the patient. Improper interpretation can cause inaccurate
diagnoses leading to improper treatment given to patients. Patients without adequate clinician
assessment can receive additional unnecessary testing, increased length of stay, or misunderstand
proper discharge instructions leading to higher likelihood of readmission (Espinoza & Derrington, 2020).
Individuals receiving substandard care are within their healthcare rights to file malpractice suits against
the healthcare organization if steps were not done correctly to ensure protocols were followed for
language interpretation. Liability is at risk when patients have an unsure approach to their own care
plan, are administered improper medications, provide poor informed consent for procedures, or using
incompetent interpreters to obtain health information (AHRQ, 2020). Hospitals open themselves up for
lawsuits galore if they do not have a plan to address the need for language interpreters within their
organization. Patient's safety should always be put as top priority. Ensuring the patient fully understands
their health plan and steps of their personalized plan of care protects the patient and the healthcare
organization as a whole.
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality [AHRQ]. (2020). Chapter 1: Background on Patient Safety
and LEP Populations. https://www.ahrq.gov/health-literacy/professional-
training/lepguide/chapter1.html
Espinoza, J. & Derrington, S. (2021). How should clinicians respond to language barriers that exacerbate
health inequality? AMA Journal of Ethics 23(2), 109-116. DOI: 10.1001/amajethics.2021.109
