Pilot Testing Transcreated Spanish-Language Study Materials for Symptom Research With Infants and Parents in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Christine A Fortney, Dana Garcia, Cynthia A Gerhardt and 3 others
PMID 38729653WHAT IT FOUND
Spanish-language NICU parent surveys about infant symptoms were mostly understandable and acceptable, but some questions needed wording changes.
Questions about comfort with English were less dependable for parents who used an interpreter.
Key findings
01The transcreated Spanish measures produced consistent responses overall, but language fluency questions were only acceptable.
02Some parents found Spanish survey questions confusing and suggested wording changes.
0347% of mothers reported trouble speaking to staff in English, 40% feared medical errors because of communication difficulty, and 27% felt unable to ask questions or understood poorly.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The pilot included 15 families and only 4 fathers, so father-reported symptom and decision-making results are very limited. The measures were not validated clinical tools. The Decision Making and Goals of Care Questionnaire had unpublished psychometric data, and language fluency was not assessed beyond self-report. Internal reliability for language fluency questions was only acceptable for parents who used an interpreter, and perceived interpreter quality was not evaluated. The sample came from one hospital catchment area, so the Spanish materials may not work for all Spanish-speaking families in other regions or dialects. Parents were not asked about previous NICU experiences, which may affect how they report symptoms now. The question about ability or inability to understand English was worded in a way that limited interpretation.
Declared interests
All authors state that they have no conflicts of interest to disclose.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that interpreters improve NICU outcomes or that these Spanish surveys are ready for routine clinical use. The study was a small pilot of research materials, did not test a treatment, and found that questions about comfort with English were less dependable for parents who used an interpreter.