Introduction

Fairview University Hospital

Fairview Health Services is one of Minnesota's largest hospital systems, treating patients of many nationalities, some of which do not speak English. Fairview needed an efficient way to train and maintain interpreters. MentorMate, in partnership with Century College, provided learning programs for interpreters on handheld computers using iQpakk™, a leading Mobile learning content management system. With this system in place, new interpreters can be trained more easily, while existing interpreters can also utilize the program to improve their skills.

The Challenge

Frustration

Interpreters are highly mobile constantly criss-crossing a vast hospital campus to perform bedside translations and don’t have time, or even an office space, to engage in traditional computer based training.

Training

As with any knowledge worker, ongoing training is key for healthcare interpreters and given their mobile work style training became problematic.

The Solution

iQpakk™ mobile learning

MentorMate assisted in the custom-development of a course on Ethics for Health Care interpreters covering a range of topics from Kantian ethics to practical guidelines such as what to do if a doctor would ask an interpreter to not communicate a particular health complication as to not worry the patient. This course was delivered on iQpakk on mobile devices to fit with the staff’s mobile work style.

The results were well received by hospital staff throughout.