¿No hablás español? Help Is Here
As the population of patients with limited English proficiency increases throughout English-speaking countries, health care providers often need translator services. Language-focused smartphone apps are a useful addition to a clinician’s toolkit.
Medical dictionary apps require the user to search for a medical term in one language to receive a translation in another language. These apps are less practical, but they can help providers find and define specific terms in a given language.
General language translator apps require the user to enter a term, statement, or question in one language and then provide a translation in another language. Google Translate and Vocre Translate are examples.
Recommended apps
My colleagues, Dr. Amrin Khander and Dr. Sara Farag, and I identified and evaluated medical translator apps that are available from the Apple iTunes and Google Play stores, to aid clinicians in using such apps during clinical encounters with non-English speakers.3
The top recommended translator apps are listed in the table, evaluated with criteria from a shortened version of the APPLICATIONS scoring system: app comprehensiveness, price, platform, literature use, and important special features.4 We hope these tools will help you enhance communication with your patients who have limited English proficiency.
