"They really trust us!": Medical Interpreter's Roles and Experiences in an Integrated Primary Care Clinic

Area of Science:

• Medical interpretation
• Behavioral health services
• Primary care

Background:

• Medical interpreters are crucial for effective communication in diverse patient populations.
• Behavioral health integration into primary care necessitates understanding the role of interpreters.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore medical interpreters' experiences with behavioral health services in a primary care setting.
• To identify the roles, barriers, and facilitators impacting interpreter-mediated behavioral health care.

Main Methods:

• Focus group data collected from medical interpreters across multiple languages.
• Hybrid inductive-deductive thematic analysis to identify key themes.

Main Results:

• Interpreters' roles included case management, fostering the patient-interpreter relationship, and acting as patient-provider liaisons.
• Key themes influencing care were cultural factors, patient-provider interactions, behavioral health specifics, and clinic environment.
• Interpreters directly and indirectly support care, with the interpreter-patient relationship enhancing patient buy-in for behavioral health services.

Conclusions:

• Medical interpreters are integral to the delivery of behavioral health services in primary care.
• Addressing identified barriers and leveraging facilitators can optimize interpreter-mediated behavioral health care.
• Strengthening the interpreter-patient relationship is vital for improving patient engagement and acceptance of behavioral health support.