One of the most challenging political, financial and logistical problems of access to health care in California has been the difficulty of delivering effective services to persons with Limited English Proficiency (LEP). The Health Access Videoconferencing Medical Interpretation (VMI) Project is to develop, pilot test, and evaluate the applicability, cost-effectiveness and cultural appropriateness of medical interpretation services provided via videoconferencing technology for diverse LEP patients at Highland and San Francisco General Hospitals.

In recent years, the availability of videoconferencing technology has moved from high cost, corporate applications to the mass consumer market. This development presents the opportunity to test the viability of videoconferencing technology in addressing the well-entrenched problem of providing effective healthcare services to LEP patients of diverse backgrounds. Videoconferencing technology can be used to provide the patient and provider with real-time visual representation of a medical interpreter who, in turn, can see both the patient and their provider, hear their words and assess their body language, providing access to professional medical interpretation. However, before videoconferencing technology can become operational on a wide scale, it first must be systematically tested and evaluated in a limited, controlled clinical setting. Over the course of a one-year pilot, VMI Project staff -in collaboration with San Francisco General Hospital (SFGH) and Highland Hospital-has tested videoconferencing interpretation services for LEP patients in a clinical setting at both of these sites. Interpreters will be drawn from the existing staffs of the two hospitals and the pilot project will test primarily in four of the high demand languages: Spanish, Cantonese, and Vietnamese.

The results of these clinical trials has been summarized in a new Health Access Report entitled Videoconferencing Medical Interpretation: The Results of Clinical Trials.

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The results of the trials demonstrated that Limited English Proficiency patients not only accepted, but embraced the delivery of medical interpretive services through videoconferencing technology. When patients were asked to rank VMI services on a scale of 1-3, where 3 is "completely satisfied", the average score was 2.9. The patients quickly understood that the utilization of this technology could significantly cut down the waiting time it takes to get an interpreter to their medical encounter and that the widespread use of this technology would improve their access to healthcare.

Secondly, the trials demonstrated that currently available technology, such as personal computers, existing hospital computer networks or wireless connections, along with relatively inexpensive videoconferencing equipment, at a cost of approximately $5000 per connection, could deliver an acceptable level of visual and audio transmission for this purpose.

The results of these clinical trials indicate that videoconferencing technology can enhance access to medical interpretation for the LEP population in the American healthcare setting in a cost effective manner.