The University Health System will accept an award today for creating programs to ease communication between doctors and patients with communication barriers.
The award, which will be presented by the American Medical Association and the American Hospital Association, is the latest honor to give the Health System national recognition.
Claudette Dalton, lead physician for the patient communication project, said the initiative was created to address the needs of a large portion of the University Health System clientele. For instance, according University Health Systems, over 60 percent of the University Hospital's adult surgery patients come in with communication disadvantages. These include deafness, effects of stroke and language barriers.
The University Hospital is one of just eight U.S. hospitals to win the award, out of almost 80 nominated nationally. According to Dalton, the award will place the University Health System as a leader among other institutions.
The award "implies that we have a high ethical standard in the treatment of our patients," she said. "Internally, it is a validation of [the staff's] effort."
Currently, the University Health System has a variety of programs in place to ease provider-patient communication, including oral and sign language interpretation. University Health System staff also implemented an International Family Medicine Clinic that focuses on care for immigrant and refugee patients, Dalton said.
Patient communication "is in my mind the core of quality healthcare," said Fern Hauck, director of the International Family Medicine Clinic.
According to Hauck, the clinic receives patients from 50 different countries who speak 40 different languages.
"This is not that common at academic medical centers, which provides some uniqueness to our institution," Fern said.
According to Peter Jump, interim director of public relations at the University Medical Center, the University Health System staff acknowledges the system's place in a population that is growing more and more diverse.
"It gives us some pride," Hauck said. "We have more [to do], but it's nice to be recognized."
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