BackgroundFew people with limited English proficiency are provided with the services of a healthcare interpreter when admitted to hospital. This retrospective study utilised health administrative data to explore which patients with limited English proficiency were provided with a healthcare interpreter during their hospital admission.MethodA retrospective analysis of health administrative data for adult overnight-stay patients admitted to a public hospital in a region of significant cultural and linguistic diversity in Sydney, Australia in 2014–2015. Descriptive analyses were used to explore demographic and diagnostic data. Chi-square and analysis of variance were used to test for association between variables.ResultsThe site hospital provided for 19,627 overnight-stay episodes of care over the one year period. Emergency admissions made up 70.5% (n = 13,845) of all hospital admissions and obstetric patients 11.7% (n = 2291). For 15.7% (n = 3074) of episodes of care a healthcare interpreter was identified at hospital admission as being required. In 3.7% (n = 727) of episodes of care a healthcare interpreter was provided. Patients who received an interpreter were more likely to be female, of a younger age and admitted to hospital for childbirth.ConclusionsA minority of patients with limited English proficiency received a healthcare interpreter during their episode of care. The majority of interpreter services were provided to obstetric patients.

INTRODUCTIONPatients with limited English proficiency (LEP) experience longer hospital length of stay (LOS) and higher readmission rates compared with the English-speaking community. 1 The impact of interpreter use on hospital outcomes, within the LEP population, is largely unknown.Reported barriers to interpreter use include practitioners' time constraints, complexity of the interpreter booking system, and convenient access to informal interpreters. 2 In this culturally diverse region in Sydney, Australia, booking the free-ofcharge interpreter service requires 3-weeks' advance notice although a 24-h emergency telephone service is available. 3 The use of informal interpreters is considered a breach of policy. 4 METHODA retrospective analysis of 19,627 de-identified and merged demographic, overnight-stay inpatient and interpreter records from one hospital for the 2014-2015 financial year were examined to determine the impact of interpreter provision on LOS and 28-day hospital readmission rates. LEP patients identified at hospital admission as needing an interpreter (n = 3074) were extracted and analysed ( Fig. 1).Pearson's chi-square was used for categorical values and Student's t test to compare LOS and readmissions between LEP patients who received the interpreter and those who did not. A Pearson's product-moment correlation was used to compute the relationship between the frequency of interpreter provisions and LOS. Statistical analyses were performed in SPSS v23 with the significance level set at 0.05. Ethics approval was gained for this study. RESULTSLEP patients who received the interpreter service (n = 526) spoke 38 different languages and were significantly more likely to be female (68.6%, n = 361, p < .001) and younger (t (3072) = − 3.79, p < .001) than those who did not receive the service. Interpreters were primarily provided for Arabic (n = 188, 35.7%), Vietnamese (n = 126, 24.1%), Greek (n = 30, 5.7%), Mandarin (n = 30, 5.7%), and Cantonese-speaking patients (n = 30, 5.7%).Interpreter appointments were made (n = 567, 18.4%) and provided for 17.1% (n = 526) of LEP patients. Rescheduling of appointments (18.9%, n = 148) and cancellations (11.9%, n = 93) were frequent, while 7.7% (n = 60) of appointments resulted in the patient, family member, or practitioner being absent at the scheduled time (reported as 'no-show'). The frequency of interpreter no-shows is not known.LEP patients provided with an interpreter had longer LOS compared with those who did not receive the service (13.5 vs. 4.8 days, p < .001). No differences between 28-day readmission rates were found (Table 1). There was a significant correlation between the number of provided interpreter sessions and LOS (r = .55, n = 3074, p = <.001). DISCUSSIONInterpreter provision and the younger female demographic are explained by a higher incidence of interpreter provision to maternity patients 5 , and the regions' higher fertility rate compared with state average. 6 The healthcare interpreter service employs interpreters speaking many languages; howev...

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