Effective physical therapy is built on the foundation of clear, precise communication. Whether you are guiding a patient through a complex manual therapy technique or explaining the nuances of a home exercise program (HEP), the success of the treatment depends heavily on the patient’s ability to understand and execute your instructions.
For physical therapy practices—from single-location private practices to growing regional groups with several locations—language access is an important component of providing effective and reliable clinical care.
The High Cost of Language Barriers in Physical Therapy
In a physical therapy setting, a simple misunderstanding can have long-term consequences. Unlike a quick diagnostic visit, PT involves ongoing education and active patient participation.
Inaccurate Clinical History and Assessment
A thorough initial evaluation requires the therapist to understand the history of an injury, the nature of the pain (is it sharp, dull or radiating?) and the patient’s functional goals. If a patient speaks English less than very well, which describes approximately 8.4% of the US population, vital details can be lost in translation. Without an interpreter, a therapist might miss a red flag symptom or misjudge the patient’s baseline, leading to a suboptimal treatment plan.
Reduced Adherence to Home Exercise Programs (HEP)
The majority of progress in physical therapy happens outside the walls of your practice. If a patient does not fully comprehend the frequency, intensity or proper form of their exercises, they are unlikely to see results. This often leads to:
- Slowed recovery times.
- Increased risk of re-injury due to improper form.
- Patient frustration and higher no-show or cancellation rates.
The Accentable Services Solution: On-Demand Language Support
Accentable Services helps physical therapy practices to communicate quickly and effectively with their patients using over-the-phone interpreting and video interpreting.
Over-the-Phone Interpreting (OPI)
Designed for maximum convenience, our over-the-phone interpreting lets your staff connect with a live, qualified interpreter right away using the calling equipment you already have.
- Cost-Effective: At $1.49 per minute, it fits the budget of a growing practice.
- 24/7 Availability: Whether you have an early morning session or a late evening evaluation, our interpreters are available 24/7.
- 260+ Languages and Dialects: We provide support for common languages like Spanish as well as many harder-to-source languages and dialects.
Video Interpreting (VRI)
Physical therapy is a visual discipline. Sometimes, an audio-only connection isn’t enough to ensure a patient understands a specific postural correction, home exercise or hand placement. Accentable Services’s video interpreting provides visual support from any video-enabled device.
- Broad Language and Accessibility Support: Available in a wide variety of major spoken languages to suit diverse patient populations, alongside qualified American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting for Deaf and hard-of-hearing patients, for $1.79 per minute.
- Easy to Use: Log in to our platform and connect with a qualified interpreter right away.
Better Communication, Better Outcomes
At the end of the day, your goal is to help your patients move better and live without pain. By removing language barriers, you ensure that every patient receives the same uncompromised standard of care.
Setting up your account takes only a few minutes. Enhance your practice’s clinical workflow and patient experience by signing up online now for instant access to live interpreters.