Nov. 17 , 2009

CONTACT:
Communications Department
(320) 251-2700, ext. 74980

CentraCare Clinic sites in Long Prairie and Melrose launch new service for non-English speaking patients

Melrose and Long Prairie, Minn. – CentraCare Clinic announced a new service designed to provide linguistically and culturally competent care to patients with limited English proficiency (LEP). Phase I of the initiative was rolled out at the CentraCare Clinic sites in Long Prairie and Melrose in September 2009.

At the core of this new service is a software application called ProLingua which helps staff to speak directly to LEP patients in their primary language. The software facilitates communication from admission through discharge. ProLingua also enables staff to provide patient-specific medication and discharge instructions, deliver dynamic patient education content, and disseminate translated documents. ProLingua currently supports Spanish, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Russian, and Korean, with Somali, Arabic, and Haitian-Creole in development.

“We have significant Spanish-speaking populations in both Melrose and Long Prairie,” said Toni Tebben, site coordinator at CentraCare Clinic - Long Prairie. “We are constantly striving to better serve our LEP communities, and ProLingua is a major step in the right direction.”

“At CentraCare, we are committed to providing the highest quality care to all patients, regardless of the language they speak,” said Julia Draxten, site coordinator at CentraCare Clinic - Melrose. “ProLingua allows each member of our staff to focus on the care provided, rather than communication concerns.”

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