The Capstone Project is designed to be completed in sections. This is part three of the assignment. Revise your Change Proposal and Implementation Draft, using feedback from your instructor, and attac

Running Head: LANGUAGE BARRIER IMPLEMENTATION PLAN 0

Language Barrier Implementation Plan

HCA 494

Communication Issue

Effective communication is an element that should be enhanced in health care. Many health care centers may develop difficulties between patients and healthcare providers due to communication barriers. Therefore, the ability of a healthcare to recognize the issues in communication and coming up with a resolution can change the working condition drastically (Karliner et al., 2012). Communication in healthcare can be hindered by the language barrier between the patient and the health service providers. Therefore, the management should ensure that there is a barrier in language is addressed to ensure patients satisfaction.

The language Barrier

The language barrier is typically the barriers to communication. The barrier is brought in by the difficulties in communication that is faced by people or groups of people speaking different languages. This kind of barrier can probably cause misunderstanding or misinterpretation of information among different people. Additionally, communication becomes difficult in situations where the parties involved do not understand the language of each other (Schenker et al., 2008). For instance, most of the people around the world do not speak in English. Therefore, communicating with them using the English language means limited communication. Basically, there will be less communication until both or one party learn the new language being used by the other party. This will require too much investment in effort, time and money.

Based on the logic model, the language barrier is a phenomenon that is caused by the failure of the patients and the healthcare providers to have a common language for communication. The language barrier will force the organization to use the devices that will help in communication between the involved parties. A comprehensive evaluation program should be put in place to endure that effective communication systems are utilized effectively.

Proposed Solutions

In order to deal with the language barrier in healthcare, the management should develop a framework of solutions that will help to eradicate the barrier. Timmins, (2002) indicates that the organization should ensure the use of multiple languages in the healthcare to ensure effective communication with the patients. There should also be the use of interpreters who are professionals in interpreting the languages so that the patients are well understood, and the right medication is administered to them. The staff should also be trained on the communication skills they will use to ensure that the effectively communicate with the patients. The use of visuals such as the pictures and the graphs will promote communication between the patients and the healthcare providers thus reducing the language barriers.

Language barriers will be resolved by ensuring that there is an effective assessment of the language barriers from time to time. The staff will also be able to improve their communication abilities using different languages. The use of professional interpreters will ensure that the information is passed on as expected from the patients to the medical practitioners and the feedback is communicated effectively.

Expected Outcome

When the language barrier is addressed effectively, there will be effective communication in the healthcare between the patients and the healthcare providers (Flores, 2006). Effective communication will improve the satisfaction of the patients thus this will increase the number of patients seeking medication from the community. There will also be an increased number of patients coming back for checkup thus increasing the profit margins of the organization. There will be complete training to the healthcare workers who will learn different languages to ensure satisfaction of the employees thus this training is permanent and long-term.

Language Barrier Implementation Plan

Purpose of the plan

The purpose of this plan is to improve the quality of care, and this will be achieved because patients will be likely to understand the significance of medications and medical procedures. This plan will also enhance patients safety outcomes in cases where the language resources are sufficient since there will be minimal harm as a result of medication errors. Medication costs will be reduced as well since which will be achieved through enhanced video conferences and better platforms (Timmins, 2017).

Resources

Trainers

Trainer’s role will be developing competency skills as well as setting individuals being trained to utilize them effectively with the highest efficiency. They will communicate to the trainees on what will be expected out of the training, the mode and requirements to ensure the goals are achieved (Flores, 2016). They will also choose relevant training methods and prepare the training materials.

Facilitators

Facilitators are other resources that are very vital and crucial. They will serve to ensure that every member is included in the training. They will ensure that the training sessions starts and ends on time. Some will go an extra mile and guide the group on the session outline (Van et al. 2018).

Technology and computer devices

Technology and computer devices also play a vital role in addressing the issue of a language barrier because they have the capacity of expressing certain aspects of language in multiple forms. These resources will reduce costs also since human interactions will be reduced. Computer devices will offer customers will advances support services in their respective language.

Stakeholders need and their impact

Several stakeholders need to take part in this implementation. External stakeholders involve the political pressure groups that can link the affected to external supporters. They provide inputs likes like supplies, and they rely on the outcomes. Physician is interface stakeholders who function both internally and externally. Internal stakeholders include staff operating within the organization. Theses stake holders are very vital in the sense that they develop ways through which language barrier issues can be handled.

Impact of this plan

Some impacts will result from this plan touching the entire organization as well as impact the stakeholders themselves. The following are the possible impacts.

Aligning the existing resources: this plan will serve to not only bring new changes to the entire management but also perfectly integrating the existing resources into the plans as far as a language barrier in health center is concerned. With this plan, the organization will be at a position of preparing and aligning the available resources with the new tools that need to be integrated into the chosen strategies.

Maintaining day to day operations: communication is a daily activity that serves to facilitate every activity and operation undertaken. Implementation of this plan will ensure that no harm will be caused by normal operations. This will better the organization.

Considering patients and employees concerns: with h this plan, the organization will be at a position of listening and replying to the employee’s grievances (Schenker et al. 2018). The plan will also enhance the line of command because the language barrier will be taken good care of. Addressing these issues, therefore, will allow the firm to remain efficient and effective in all the activities that they undertake.


Implementation timeline

Task

Target date/duration

Task owner(s)

Initial conference call

  • Inviting relevant trainers

  • Venue booking

  • Reviewing the participants

3 days

Executive committee

Preparation of training

  • Set up requirements

  • Give out schedules

  • Send timeline

  • Share training notes

3 days

Organizing committee

Actual training

  • Review objectives

  • Go through the content

  • Share relevant material

  • Question and answer session

15 days

Hired trainers and facilitators

Operation synchronization

  • Ways of synchronizing the plan with existing operations

2 months

Organizational board

Implementation

  • Actual implementation of the plan in normal activities.

9 months

Entire organization


Implementation steps

  1. Exploration

This stage will allow identification of the need for adjustments and formulating ways or activities through which the needs can be met. Decisions on whether to fully adopt the new system or run them simultaneously are also made at this stage (Morgan & Qiao, 2016).

  1. Installation

At this stage, the capacity to come up with a system that will support the implementation of the new plan examination of the components that will be incorporated.

  1. Initial implementation

At this stage, all the new practices are placed in their respective places where they are needed. Feedback is given back to the matters involving the allocation.

  1. Full implementation

This stage assures the practices that were tested in the initial implementation are implemented with the fidelity of the highest order and that they achieve the expectations in the relevant firm. It also checks on the sustainability of the plans capabilities.

Barriers and possible solutions

The possible barriers from this plan are language disabilities and dialects. Dialects occur when people are technically speaking the same language but dialectically different. This can result to misunderstanding (Karliner et al. 2014). Language disabilities is a barrier in this plan because a good number of people work with impediments and may be suffering from different issues including dysphagia and hearing impairment.

Solutions to these barriers include looking for reliable translation services that will ensure each and everyone’s need is catered for. Use of visual methods is also a better solution that as it will enhance communication to individuals who have hearing impairments.

References

Flores, G. (2016). Language barriers to health care in the United States. New England Journal of Medicine355(3), 229-231.

Karliner, L. S., Auerbach, A., Nápoles, A., Schillinger, D., Nickleach, D., & Pérez-Stable, E. J. (2014). Language barriers and understanding of hospital discharge instructions. Medical care50(4), 283.

Morgan, M., & Qiao, K. (2016). Multiculturalism, Language Barriers, and Service Quality. Journal of Interpretation Research21(1).

Schenker, Y., Lo, B., Ettinger, K. M., & Fernandez, A. (2018). Navigating language barriers under difficult circumstances. Annals of Internal Medicine149(4), 264-269.

Timmins, C. L. (2017). The impact of language barriers on the health care of Latinos in the United States: a review of the literature and guidelines for practice. The Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health47(2), 80-96.

Van Rosse, F., de Bruijne, M., Suurmond, J., Essink-Bot, M. L., & Wagner, C. (2016). Language barriers and patient safety risks in hospital care. A mixed methods study. International journal of nursing studies54, 45-53.