Best Practices for Partnering With Interpreters in Clinical Encounters: A Multimodal Approach for Teaching Medical Students.

INTRODUCTION

Effectively working with medical interpreters is a critical skill for all physicians. We partnered with interpreters, students, and faculty to co-design and co-teach an educational session to improve medical students' knowledge and confidence in working with interpreters.

METHODS

The multimodal educational intervention lasted 120 minutes and included a didactic presentation, video role-play encounters, and a panel discussion with interpreters. The intervention was evaluated with pre- and post-session surveys. McNemar's test was used to compare knowledge and confidence scores.

RESULTS

A total of 161 pre-clinical medical students participated in the session. Students identified knowledge they learned, including the role of interpreters, the importance of not relying on family members as interpreters, the use of pre-encounter huddles, and appropriate physical positioning. After the intervention, the majority of students identified best practices for working with interpreters (n = 64 (57.7%), pre-session vs. n = 45 (71.4%), post-session; p = 0.04) and reported improved confidence working with interpreters (n = 73 (65.8%), pre-session vs. n = 60 (95.2%), post-session; p < 0.001).

DISCUSSION: This innovative curriculum was unique in its interprofessional co-design and co-teaching approach and introduction of nuanced, contemporary clinical scenarios. Overall, this innovative curriculum was successful in enhancing student knowledge and confidence in working with interpreters.