There will be occasions when patients who attend this practice will require the services of an interpreter and/or a translator and they may fall into the following categories:
- Patients for whom English may not be their first spoken language and who have difficulty in communicating
- Those who communicate using sign language
- Patients who return home from overseas having previously needed to rely upon that nation’s healthcare facilities
Patients should be able to access primary care services in a way that ensures their language and communication requirements do not prevent them from receiving the same quality of healthcare as others. This document will help to ensure that the practice has a clear, consistent, transparent and fair approach to the provision of information and communication support for all, in line with policy and legal requirements.
As soon as the requirement for an interpreter is known, we will arrange for an interpretor to be available for your consultation.
Interpreter services are available for either telephone consultations or face to face.