--- title: Dan's Dose of the Day - Lost in Translation description: Communicating this patient’s treatment plan to her and her family was delayed enormously due to this translation barrier. image: https://blog.thoughtwire.com/hubfs/Media%20Library/Stock%20images/Healthcare/blood-pressure-gauge-business-computer-263370.jpg --- [![ThoughtWire](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Asset-19/ThoughtWire.png?width=585&name=ThoughtWire.png "ThoughtWire")](https://www.thoughtwire.com/) - [Smart Hospitals](https://thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-products/) - [Smart Buildings](https://thoughtwire.com/smart-building-products/) - [Technology](https://thoughtwire.com/technology/) - [About](https://thoughtwire.com/about/) - [Resources](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-built-environment-resource/) - [Smart Resources](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-built-environment-resource/) - [Blog](https://blog.thoughtwire.com) - [News Center](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/news) - [Request a Demo](https://info.thoughtwire.com/demo) #### OverView Our HighIQ Smart Healthcare solution helps optimize the day-to-day lives of doctors, nurses, and clinicians at work. Find the right solution for your hospital. [Find Out More](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-products/) #### GET STARTED - ##### [Problems We Solve](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-solutions/problems-we-solve/) Solve your biggest challenges - ##### [Our Solutions](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-solutions/) Make your hospital smarter - ##### [Our Customers](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-solutions/customers/) Who we work with #### PRODUCTS - ##### [EarlyWarning](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-products/early-warning-application) Better predict patient deterioration - ##### [SynchronizedOps](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-products/synchronized-ops-application) Improve efficiency to reduce wait times - ##### [RapidResponse](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-products/rapid-response-application/) Respond to patients faster and better #### Overview Our HighIQ Smart Buildings solution empowers building owners and occupants to take control of their space. Find the right solution for your commercial building. [Find Out More](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-products/) #### GET STARTED - ##### [The Problems](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-solutions/problems-we-solve/) Solve your biggest challenges - ##### [Our Solutions](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-solutions/) Make your building smarter - ##### [Our Customers](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-solutions/customers/) Who we work with #### PRODUCTS - ##### [PrecisionHub](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-products/precision-hub/) Optimize building operations - ##### [@Work](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-products/at-work-application/) Improve tenant experience #### Overview Built using a super-fast graph database, our Digital Twin technology is at the heart of our applications. [Download e-book](https://info.thoughtwire.com/fp-opm-application-digital-twin-technology-ebook) #### GET STARTED - ##### [Overview](https://www.thoughtwire.com/technology) Connecting people and spaces for smarter built environments. - ##### [Digital Twin Technology](https://www.thoughtwire.com/technology/digital-twin/) What is a Digital Twin? - ##### [Core Services & Connectors](https://www.thoughtwire.com/technology/platform-services) The foundation for smart built environments #### OVERVIEW At ThoughtWire, we’re on a mission to create Smarter Spaces by using powerful Digital Twin Technology to bring Built Environments to life. [FIND OUT MORE](https://www.thoughtwire.com/about/) #### GET STARTED - ##### [Our Leadership](https://www.thoughtwire.com/about/leadership) Dedicated, focused and experienced executive - ##### [Careers](https://www.thoughtwire.com/about/careers/) You belong at Thoughtwire #### Find Out More - ##### [Ambiant Labs](https://www.thoughtwire.com/about/ambiant-labs) Making the art of possible come to life - ##### [News Center](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/news) Keep up with the latest ## [How Healthy and Resilient Is Your Building?](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/how-healthy-and-resilient-is-your-building) by [Christina Piruchta](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/author/christina-piruchta) on March 02, 2021 Top 3 Reasons Your Building’s Intelligence is Key to Your Safe Back-to-Work Strategy How would you feel if your building could assess sanitation and s\[...\] [Read more](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/how-healthy-and-resilient-is-your-building) ## [Poll Results: The Value Smart Buildings bring Occupants, Operators and Owners](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/value-of-smart-buildings-poll-results) by [Frans van Staden](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/author/frans-van-staden) on October 27, 2020 During our recent webinar, we asked our attendees a series of poll questions that cover three themes: 1. What makes a Building Smart, 2. The value a D\[...\] [Read more](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/value-of-smart-buildings-poll-results) ## [Expert Q&A: The Value Smart Buildings bring Occupants, Operators and Owners - Part 2](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/value-of-smart-buildings-part-2) by [ThoughtWire](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/author/thoughtwire) on October 12, 2020 Recently, we hosted a webinar with industry experts from Yorkland Controls, DB Engineering and Multiplex. Below is part two of two excerpts from our e\[...\] [Read more](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/value-of-smart-buildings-part-2) ## [Expert Q&A: The Value Smart Buildings bring Occupants, Operators and Owners - Part 1](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/value-of-smart-buildings-part-1) by [ThoughtWire](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/author/thoughtwire) on October 06, 2020 Recently, we hosted a webinar with industry experts from Yorkland Controls, DB Engineering and Multiplex. Below is part one of two excerpts from our e\[...\] [Read more](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/value-of-smart-buildings-part-1) ## [Evolution of the Real-Time Health System](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/evolution-of-the-real-time-health-system) by [Carly McLeod](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/author/carly-mcleod) on August 18, 2020 Health systems have evolved significantly with technology throughout the years, with each innovation aiming to reach a higher level of transformation,\[...\] [Read more](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/evolution-of-the-real-time-health-system) # Thoughts Over the Wire - [Events (24)](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/tag/events) - [Featured (68)](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/tag/featured) - [Smart Buildings (77)](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/tag/smart-buildings) - [Smart Hospitals (47)](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/tag/smart-hospitals) - [TW Team (31)](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/tag/tw-team) - [TWTurns10 (8)](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/tag/twturns10) [Back to Blog](https://blog.thoughtwire.com) # Dan's Dose of the Day - Lost in Translation By [Dan Nguyen](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/author/dan-nguyen)30, May 2019 A few years back in early spring, a patient with my last name was admitted to my unit; Nguyen is one of the most common last names in the world. During handoff, the previous nurse informed me that this patient didn't speak a word of English and required the hospital’s translation services. I told her not to worry, that I could take on that patient assignment since I speak Vietnamese... I was wrong. Turns out, speaking a language fluently enough to communicate medical terminology is very different from being conversant with friends and family.. I quickly swallowed my pride and started to use the translation services that the hospital subscribed to. To describe how these services worked, imagine playing the most elaborate game of phone tag ever. You - the nurse -  speak into a phone, then hand it to the patient, who listens to someone else translating what you just said. Then the patient speaks to the translator,  passes the phone back to you, and you listen to the translator repeat what the patient said. It’s essentially the same as any in-person translation service, but when you add a phone into the mix it introduces room for a lot of the dialogue to fall through the cracks. > the entire medication administration process took ten times longer than usual, which delayed my other patients from receiving care. Put yourself in my shoes for a second; imagine the first time I had to give this patient her medication. The first time meds get administered, nurses should take the time to explain what they are for and how the patient might feel on them (good practice actually states that we should do this every time). Let’s review what I was physically carrying at the time: a cup full of unopened pills, a glass of water, the medication barcode scanner, the translator phone, my notebook and pen, my stethoscope, and that’s not even everything. The juggling of scanning the medication, passing the phone to the patient, opening up the medication package… needless to say, the entire medication administration process took ten times longer than usual, which delayed my other patients from receiving care. Communicating this patient’s treatment plan to her and her family was delayed enormously due to this translation barrier. I felt awful knowing that I wasn’t able to communicate effectively; the asynchronous nature of our ‘dialogues’ prevented our conversations from feeling genuine, and we're often rushed so that I could get to my other patients. These delays had downstream results, and impacted the length of the patient’s stay as well as how long it took them to start any new treatment. This lack of synchronicity and its downstream effects are not unique to patient communication, but apply to health information systems as a whole. > Communicating this patient’s treatment plan to her and her family was delayed enormously due to this translation barrier. Much like my experience with this patient, asynchronous [communication between back-end systems](https://info.thoughtwire.com/fp-opm-application-download-connector-datasheet) & repositories with end user interactions & their context must overcome the hurdles of latency. Data that clinicians are looking for and want to share between each other is not always readily available; documents get created by users and systems but is not accessible in one convenient place. Many health information systems are not modelled to have [data flow in real time](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-products/); the traditional message broker and ESB models are not capable of supporting context sharing in real time. With [technologies](https://www.thoughtwire.com/technology/) and models such as the Semantic Web pushing the envelope of how we think about data sharing, the healthcare world is ready for data in real time. **[Schedule a demo](https://info.thoughtwire.com/demo)** to see how our [Smart Hospital applications](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-products/) can optimize the day-to-day lives of doctors, nurses and clinicians at work. [Back to Blog](https://blog.thoughtwire.com) ### Schedule a Demo ## [![demo-cta](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/hs-fs/hubfs/demo-cta.png?width=250&name=demo-cta.png)](https://info.thoughtwire.com/demo) ### How do you connect the inside with the outside world? [![Video-smart-cities](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Web%20Images/Video-smart-cities.png?width=300&name=Video-smart-cities.png)](https://info.thoughtwire.com/mike-monteith-talks-how-smarter-buildings-are-the-key-to-smart-cities-opm-applications-bisnow) ### Find out how Hamilton Health Sciences is turning vision into reality  [![Case Study - Hamilton Health Sciences](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Asset%20Cover/Screenshot%202018-10-17%2009.45.18.png?t=1543257506419&width=280&name=Screenshot%202018-10-17%2009.45.18.png)](https://info.thoughtwire.com/fp-smart-hospital-case-study-hamilton-health-sciences-prevent-code-blues-calls)  ### Download the industry's first strategy blueprint for OPM [![OPM_strategy](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/hs-fs/hubfs/OPM_strategy.png?width=300&name=OPM_strategy.png)](https://info.thoughtwire.com/download-the-industrys-first-strategy-blueprint-for-opm-fp) ### Subscribe Thoughts Over the Wire to receive the insights on Operations Performance Management (OPM) ### Read more of what you like. ## [Evolution of the Real-Time Health System](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/evolution-of-the-real-time-health-system) ## [Dan's Dose of the Day - Energizing your Hospital](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/energizing-your-hospital) ## [Dan's Dose of the Day - Putting the ‘Real’ in Real-Time Health Systems](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/putting-the-real-in-real-time-health-systems) ![newsletter_bg](https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hub/2432204/hubfs/99%20Template%20Pack/newsletter_bg.jpeg?t=1540381063743&width=2000&name=newsletter_bg.jpeg "newsletter_bg") ## Get all News Updates to your inbox. Please subscribe with your business email address. ### Subscribe Here! ![ThoughtWire](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Asset-19/tw_logo_white-2.png?width=554&height=100&name=tw_logo_white-2.png "ThoughtWire") ThoughtWire is on a mission to bring the built environment to life. By orchestrating data from people, process, and the physical built environment ThoughtWire’s built environment Digital Twin delivers smarter, safer and more efficient hospitals, commercial buildings, and cities. Connect and follow us to learn more. - - - #### Smart Hospital Solutions - [Problems We Solve](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-solutions/problems-we-solve/) - [Our Solutions](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-solutions/) - [Our Customers](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-hospital-solutions/customers/) #### Smart Building Solutions - [Problems We Solve](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-solutions/problems-we-solve/) - [Our Solutions](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-solutions/) - [Our Customers](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-solutions/customers/) #### About - [Technology](https://www.thoughtwire.com/technology/) - [About](https://www.thoughtwire.com/about/) - [Blog](https://blog.thoughtwire.com/) - [Resources](https://www.thoughtwire.com/smart-built-environment-resource/) - [Privacy Policy](https://www.thoughtwire.com/privacy-policy/) - [Smart Building Definitions](https://info.thoughtwire.com/smart-building-definitions) © All rights reserved ThoughtWire 2021