Utilizing a Digital Multi-Language Patient Questionnaire for Diagnostic Imaging Examinations

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Health Informatics
• Patient Communication

Background:

• Language barriers in diagnostic imaging (DI) hinder patient history collection and can compromise patient safety.
• Current reliance on interpreters has practical limitations for effective communication.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the feasibility and practicality of a digital, multi-language questionnaire for DI.
• To address language barriers in bone mineral density (BMD) examinations.

Main Methods:

• Translated a standard English BMD questionnaire into multiple languages.
• Implemented an electronic questionnaire system for patient use.
• Automated conversion of responses to English for review via RIS and PACS.

Main Results:

• All patients and clinical staff reported comfort using the translated digital questionnaires.
• The system successfully converted responses for review by DI staff.
• Developed a digital multi-language questionnaire integrated with RIS and PACS.

Conclusions:

• A digital multi-language questionnaire is a feasible and practical solution for overcoming language barriers in BMD examinations.
• This approach enhances patient safety and improves data management in DI.
• This novel system was successfully developed and tested for DI practice.