New York medical systems seek bilingual nurses to help address virus spread among Latinos

As previously reported, the Black community has been disproportionately and adversely impacted healthcare-wise during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic as compared to other groups. Yet, Latinos have had to deal with quality of care problems and negative outcomes as well. Many Latinos have also dealt with a language barrier that causes diagnosis and treatment delays.

As reported by RochesterFirst.com, bilingual nurses only make up four percent of total registered nurses for the state. A Latino RN and manager at Rochester Regional Health in Children’s Health Home Care, Daliza Ramos-Cortez, explained that many Spanish speakers dislike using interpreters because of language and cultural barriers and fears related to misinterpretation. On the other hand, Ramos-Cortez further explained: “When you have that face to face [with] a Spanish-speaking nurse, you can relate to them on a much different level. You have that human connection that is priceless. You know we can relate to them linguistically, as well as culturally.”

Given these communication barriers, medical systems throughout New York are now seeking bilingual nurses to make it easier for Latinos to receive much-needed care. New York isn’t alone in the search. Officials at healthcare systems throughout the nation have realized that they can provide higher quality and faster care to minority patients who speak other languages beyond English. Bilingual nurses bridge the communication gap between minority patients and doctors.

Any bilingual nurse interested in front line job opportunities can find out more information by contacting their local healthcare systems.

Sources:

RochesterFirst.com

Washington Post

MyCentralOregon.com