Language Barrier

Crain's Health Pulse - April 8, 2003

Many people who speak English as a second language have problems understanding written and verbal instructions for their prescription medications. That was the conclusion of a survey of 592 ESL speakers conducted by TransPerfect Translations, a Manhattan firm. A third of the survey respondents said that they did not fully understand their doctor's directions regarding medications, and 28% said they had guessed at the proper dosage for a prescription drug. Some 17% of respondents said they had performed an activity while on medication, such as driving, that they should not have, and nearly one in 10 said they had given incorrect doses of drugs to their children.

About TransPerfect
With revenue of over $250 million, TransPerfect is the largest privately held language services provider in the world. From offices in 66 cities on 5 continents, TransPerfect offers a full range of services in over 100 languages to multinationals worldwide. With a global network of over 4,000 linguists and subject-area specialists, TransPerfect is the largest translation company to be fully ISO 9001:2008 and EN 15038:2006 certified. TransPerfect is headquartered in New York and has regional headquarters in London and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit our website at www.transperfect.com.