Language Line Services' 'Center for Excellence' Announces Series of Free Webinars by Experts in Language Access for Healthcare

MONTEREY, Calif., July 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Language Line® University, the testing and training division of Language Line Services, the largest language services provider for the healthcare industry, today announced the first in a series of free Webinars from industry experts offered through its new "Language Access Center for Excellence." Martin Conroy, former regulator and director of the Division of Acute and Primary Care Services at the New York State Department of Health, will speak online at 10 a.m. Pacific on Tuesday, July 19, about language access compliance issues and effective communication for limited English proficient patients and their families.

This online webinar will address The Joint Commission's Patient-Centered Communication standards and review tools, resources, solutions and best practices to help hospitals comply.

Register at http://www.languageline.com/lace_jc_webinar for this free Webinar. Confirmation and dial-in information will be distributed shortly after registration.

"The Joint Commission's newly revised requirements (in pilot phase since January 2011 and soon to become effective January 2012) are applicable to hospital accreditation. They require hospitals to carefully review current processes and procedures and make the necessary adjustments to demonstrate that they are in compliance with various elements of performance or they risk losing funding," says Conroy, current senior manager for Public Sector Programs at Language Line Services, with 37 years of public service responsible for the regulatory oversight of hospitals and clinics. "The Webinar will help hospitals ensure they have the right tools in place, including proof of interpreter competency."

The "Language Access Center for Excellence" offers subject matter expert speakers on a variety of topics, including: language access, standards and best practices; compliance with the Joint Commission new and revised standards, Federal and State regulations/statutes, Title VI, and CLAS standards; performance measurement and quality improvement; and developing and implementing a language access program.

Speakers are available to Language Line Services customers, government agencies, industry conferences, not-for-profit organizations and other stakeholders, typically at no charge or a minimal fee based on the location, event and required preparation time. The speakers can provide expertise, consultation and education.

Language Line Services, which created the over-the-phone interpreting industry almost 30 years ago, fields thousands of interpreting calls daily from healthcare providers, led by the majority of the top 50 U.S. healthcare organizations.

The company's mission to champion issues important to customers is reflected in both the independent Global Advisory Council (GAC) it helped form with other interpreting experts and patient advocates, and the nation's first national certification test for medical interpreters, (recently adopted by the state of Oregon) and the independent National Board of Certification for Medical Interpreters which it co-founded with the International Medical Interpreters Association (IMIA).

The Language Access Center for Excellence coordinates with the GAC, as well as Language Line Services' Healthcare User Group (HUG), to help meet the needs of today and tomorrow's healthcare stakeholders. For more about the Language Access Center for Excellence, visit http://www.languageline.com/industry_healthcare_excellence.

To register for this free webinar, visit http://www.languageline.com/lace_jc_webinar and complete the brief form. Confirmation and dial-in information will be provided shortly after registration.

About Language Line Services

Language Line Services, the global leader in telephone interpreting and language solutions, serves clients in government, healthcare, telecommunications, financial services, utilities, insurance and many other industries by quickly connecting them to their customers, patients and sales prospects in more than 170 spoken languages as well as American Sign Language (ASL) and Mexican Sign Language (LSM). Language Line Services, cofounder of the National Board of Certification for Medical Interpreters (http://www.certifiedmedicalinterpreters.org), is recognized as a trusted partner to thousands of public and private organizations throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, providing easy access to the industry's fastest language interpreting service at highly competitive rates. For more information about Language Line Services' suite of telephone, on-site and video interpreting, document translation, interpreter assessment and training programs, please call (800) 752-6096 or visit http://www.languageline.com.  

Contact:

Trent Freeman
Olmstead Williams Communications
310.824.9000
[email protected]
http://www.olmsteadwilliams.com

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SOURCE Language Line Services