Why Is Language Certification Important in Healthcare?<\/h2>\n
Language certification in healthcare overcomes the\u00a0language barrier in healthcare<\/a>, preventing medical misinformation and miscommunication. According to the United States Census Bureau,\u00a067.8 million American residents<\/a>\u00a0speak a language other than English. Approximately\u00a039% of Spanish speakers<\/a>, 35% of Arabic speakers, 52% of Chinese speakers, and 57% of Vietnamese speakers have limited or no English proficiency.<\/p>\n A significant part of patient-centered care is language access. Healthcare providers must ensure patients understand the correct medical information and advice they receive.\u00a0Language diversity also helps medical practices comply with legal regulations. The government legally requires healthcare facilities\u00a0to address language differences<\/a>\u00a0because it ensures individuals have equal access to medical care.<\/p>\n Providing certified language services to non-English speaking individuals and their families is essential because\u00a0it benefits patients and workers in the following ways:<\/p>\n Language certification is crucial in healthcare because it helps\u00a0reduce the disparities\u00a0linguistically and culturally diverse patients\u00a0experience. Language testing and certification\u00a0validate\u00a0a multilingual healthcare professional’s\u00a0proficiency in reading, writing, speaking, and listening.\u00a0It\u00a0legitimizes\u00a0an individual’s\u00a0language skills.<\/p>\n Multilingual healthcare professionals often\u00a0facilitate communication between medical staff\u00a0and patients with minimal or no English proficiency. Multilingual providers can explain procedures and risks to patients and their families. They can also help patients navigate the complex healthcare system. Multilingual healthcare workers who\u00a0are\u00a0proficient in the necessary language<\/a>, culture, and contextual barriers\u00a0can successfully advocate for patients with limited English proficiency.<\/p>\n The\u00a0healthcare industry critically needs\u00a0workers with language skillsets, and language certification helps individuals elevate their professional profiles. Certification\u00a0makes\u00a0healthcare workers\u00a0more marketable and provides\u00a0the opportunity to explore jobs\u00a0with\u00a0higher salaries.<\/p>\n Individuals can take language assessments conveniently from their homes, offices, and laptops and add certifications to their resumes. Healthcare workers can better impact their patients and the healthcare industry with language certification.<\/p>\n Multilingual healthcare workers such as interpreters, translators, nurses, and patient care technicians are uniquely qualified to provide optimal care to patients with limited English proficiency (LEP).\u00a0However, not all self-proclaimed\u00a0multilingual individuals\u00a0have the appropriate\u00a0language skills to interpret or translate medical information.<\/p>\n Providing quality\u00a0healthcare services begins with ensuring\u00a0employees reflect\u00a0the\u00a0community’s diversity and can help overcome the language barrier. Responsible healthcare providers use\u00a0valid and reliable assessments<\/a>\u00a0when hiring multilingual staff, especially\u00a0those\u00a0on the front lines and\u00a0those\u00a0who make up the biggest part of a\u00a0hospital or health center’s\u00a0care team.<\/p>\n As a\u00a0healthcare hiring manager,\u00a0consider requiring\u00a0candidates\u00a0to\u00a0take language assessments\u00a0during\u00a0the interview process.\u00a0An assessment provides\u00a0proof of\u00a0an applicant’s\u00a0language proficiency.\u00a0ACTFL language assessments properly evaluate language proficiency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Language Testing International\u00ae<\/sup>\u00a0(LTI) is the exclusive licensee of ACTFL language tests and can help you identify the appropriate language proficiency levels and tests for the positions you fill.<\/p>\n Take the guesswork out of hiring multilingual staff. The demand is clear. Ensure\u00a0your organization is prepared to\u00a0serve your growing community and mitigate risk.<\/p>\n LTI is the exclusive licensee of ACTFL language assessments. LTI has been a\u00a0language testing leader since 1992<\/a>\u00a0and delivers tests in over 120 languages in more than 60 countries. You can trust LTI to deliver ACTFL tests that accurately evaluate language proficiency. The healthcare industry trusts ACTFL language certification because ACTFL assessments test workers’ abilities to use languages in everyday contexts.<\/p>\n With ACTFL language certification, healthcare workers can boost their careers and increase their chances of acquiring higher-paying positions. Employers can use ACTFL tests to hire the most proficient applicants and ensure their multilingual employees are proficient enough to meet patient needs.<\/p>\n Patients depend on proficient multilingual healthcare providers. Multilingual doctors, nurses, and care teams can help patients with limited English proficiency navigate the healthcare system. They can ensure patients receive accurate medical information and advice to make informed decisions.<\/p>\n LTI can help healthcare providers and employers evaluate language proficiency. As the exclusive licensee of ACTFL language assessments, LTI delivers tests that assess reading, speaking, listening, and writing skills.<\/p>\n ACTFL tests help employers determine the most proficient applicants. They also help healthcare providers enhance their resumes and increase their career opportunities.\u00a0Contact us to take a test<\/a>\u00a0and increase your marketability if you are a healthcare provider.\u00a0Learn more about ACTFL language assessments<\/a>\u00a0and certification for evaluating candidates if you are an employer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Why Is Language Certification Important in Healthcare? Language certification is essential in healthcare because it ensures optimal patient care and increases safety. Speaking more than one language in healthcare positions helps nurses, doctors, and care teams provide quality care for diverse communities. Overcoming language barriers in healthcare is crucial because it ensures patients receive and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":2534,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[162,2,195],"tags":[48,30,33,42,32,28,64,182,211,73,158,44,8,41,145,31,212,66,207,206,9],"class_list":["post-879","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bilingual-professionals","category-commercial","category-language-proficient","tag-bilingual","tag-bilingual-employee","tag-bilingual-employees","tag-determining-proficiency","tag-employee-language-assessment","tag-employee-language-skills","tag-english-speaking-test","tag-healthcare","tag-healthcare-worker","tag-jobseekers","tag-language-certification","tag-language-in-the-workplace","tag-language-test","tag-language-testing-for-positions","tag-multilingual","tag-multilingual-employees","tag-multilingual-healthcare-employee","tag-oral-proficiency","tag-spanish-language-test","tag-spanish-test","tag-testing"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/01-Why-Is-Language-Certification-So-Important-in-Healthcare-min.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=879"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3194,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879\/revisions\/3194"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2534"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=879"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=879"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=879"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Enhanced Patient Care and Safety<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/02-Greater-areer-Opportunities-for-Healthcare-Workers-min.jpg\")
<\/p>\nGreater Career Opportunities for Healthcare Workers<\/h3>\n
How to Certify Multilingual Healthcare Workers<\/h2>\n
About Language Testing International<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/03-Learn-More-About-Langauge-Certification-for-Healthcare-Providers-and-Employers-min.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nLearn More About Language Certification for Healthcare Providers and Employers<\/h2>\n