Impact of translated health information on CALD older people's health literacy : a pilot study

Language barriers limit culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) people's access to a range of services. but particularly healthcare (Brach and Fraserirector, 2000). This lack of participation negatively affects their health in a variety of ways. Most importantly, it results in a poor understanding of healthcare information. which in turn means CALD communities are less likely to receive preventive health care. and when they do they have a low adherence to treatment (Jacobs et al. 2006). English language barriers go hand in hand with low health literacy (Singleton, 2009 ), which is defined as "the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain. process. and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions" (Ratzan & Parker, 2000). In Australia, "'[p]eople who do not speak English well or at all are less likely to assess their health as good or better (59% compared to 83% of all people)" (Australian Social Inclusion Board). Effective communication is essential for healthcare: without it "the provision of health care ends - or proceeds only with errors, poor quality, and risks to patient safety" (Schyve, 2007 ). As has been pointed out several times in this volume (e.g. Rosendo; Lin & Ji; and Sharkas & Hamdan), translation plays an important role in making healthcare information more (or less) accessible to communities with limited host country literacy, thereby educating these communities and improving their health literacy. Such translation adaption lies at the core of culturally competent healthcare delivery (Kreuter et al., 2003).