Communicating with immigrants: medical interpreters in health care.

Effective communication between health care providers and immigrants who may speak little or no English is the foundation of evaluation and treatment and the most important component of the doctor-patient relationship. An immigrant in Rhode Island may speak any one of a number of languages; Spanish, Portuguese, Cambodian and Italian are the most widely spoken. Although many physicians and other health care providers are fluent in a second language, the majority use only English for verbal communication with patients. Because of the large percentage of immigrants to Rhode Island who speak English as a second language (ESL), or no English at all, health care practitioners must rely on medical interpretation services.