Testing the use of translation apps to overcome everyday healthcare communication in Australian aged-care hospital wards-An exploratory study.
Kerry Hwang, Sue Williams, Emiliano Zucchi and 6 others
PMID 34704379WHAT IT FOUND
Staff found translation apps helped basic ward communication with older patients who spoke little English, especially pain and care routines.
Phrase apps could not translate patient replies, and Google Translate was slow or inaccurate, so use was limited to low-risk exchanges.
Key findings
01Eighteen of 24 surveyed staff found the apps useful, and 15 of 24 said they would use them again.
02Phrase-based apps could not translate patients' replies, while Google Translate could be slow, inaccurate, or confused by dialect and accent.
03The apps helped basic care communication such as pain and toileting, but the phrase apps were limited to low-risk phrases, not consent or complex medical conversations.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
It was done in four aged-care hospital wards at three Melbourne hospitals, so it may not apply to acute care, residential aged care, or other settings. Only 21 observations were analysed, and observation collection had no set rules, so selected interactions may be over- or under-reported. The study did not capture older patients' own views of the apps. Only free apps were tested; paid apps were not evaluated. The apps were for low-risk phrases only, not consent or complex procedures. The study was exploratory and had no registered primary outcome.
Declared interests
One author helped develop and test TalkToMe. The authors state she was only involved in protocol design and manuscript review, not recruitment, consent, data collection, analysis, or trial procedures. No other competing interests were declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that translation apps improve patient outcomes or can replace interpreters. The study measured staff acceptability and basic low-risk communication, not patient outcomes, and phrase apps could not translate patient replies.