OHCIA partners with Health Share and CareOregon to increase access to health care interpreters in the Portland metro region

Today, the Oregon Health Care Interpreters Association (OHCIA) announced the implementation of a program that aims to further the professionalization of health care interpreters in partnership with Health Share and CareOregon. This three-year $525,000 investment in OHCIA will increase language access services for individuals on the Oregon Health Plan by increasing the number of credentialed health care interpreters in the Portland metro area.

“Whether an interpreter needs to gain state credentials for the first time, or they need extra support to maintain their credentials, this grant aims to support all health care interpreters so we can best provide for folks on the Oregon Health Plan,” said Ifeoma Muoto, CareOregon director of community health. “Access to high quality interpretation services enables members to fully participate in their care.”

The ultimate goals are to improve health quality and health outcomes for patients, enhance positive health care outcomes for members with limited English proficiency (LEP), and reduce health disparities among minority populations in the Metro region.

Maria Michalczyk, OHCIA’s President Emeritus of the Board of Directors who will be leading the project said: “This exciting partnership will provide an expansion of available funds for health care interpreters and budding professionals to receive training, become credentialed and be on the Oregon Health Authority health care interpreter registry free of charge for those who qualify for this program. This innovative joint venture is a novel project that supports the needs of communities by way of increasing equal access to health care by ensuring that health care interpreters are trained, tested and credentialed.”

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The major components of the project include:

Health Care Interpreter Training

• Offering the 60-hour health care interpreter training course to students who are committed to obtaining their qualification/certification with the state.

State Credentialing

• Following students with an assigned case manager from entry of the training program all the way through credentialing.

• Reaching out to those credentialed HCIs and guiding them through the recredentialing process.

Continuing Education

• Offering Continuing Education Units to HCIs that are close to the renewal of their credentials with the state to avoid losing it.

Case management

• Providing case management services for those HCIs identified as the best candidates to receive follow-up, mentoring, financial support assistance and assistance through the certification and credentialing process. E.g., individuals representing languages with higher interpreter needs, individuals residing in rural communities but providing interpreter services in the Metro region.

  Looking specially to support individuals that speak the following languages:
  Karen, Punjabi, Marshallese, Chuukese, Tagalog, Indigenous Mesoamerican languages such as Q’eqch’qe, Akateko, Mixteco Alto y Bajo and any others

Health Care Provider Training

• Provide training for the clinical provider network on “working with interpreters” and on the importance of utilizing trained/credentialed interpreters.

Funding for this program is being provided by Health Share of Oregon. This partnership with OHCIA is part of a larger effort to improve the quality of care for members with limited English proficiency. CareOregon, a key Health Share partner, is supporting implementation of this effort.

About the Oregon Health Care Interpreters Association

The Oregon Health Care Interpreters Association (OHCIA) is a nonprofit 501C3 organization founded in 2010. The OHCIA was founded by interpreters and has been dedicated to creating positive changes for the Pacific Northwest's diverse populations. OHCIA’s vision is to have a highly skilled HCI community that is economically successful and valued as an integral member of the health care team. OHCIA’s mission is to advance the Health Care Interpreter profession to improve health outcomes for our community.

About Health Share

Health Share of Oregon is the state’s largest Medicaid coordinated care organization (CCO), serving almost 440,000 Oregon Health Plan members in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington counties. Our mission is to partner with communities to achieve ongoing transformation, health equity and the best possible health for each individual. Health Share was founded and continues to be governed by 11 health care organizations serving OHP members: Adventist Health, CareOregon, Central City Concern, Clackamas County, Kaiser Permanente, Legacy Health, Multnomah County, Oregon Health & Science University, Providence Health & Services, Tuality Health Alliance and Washington County.

About CareOregon

For more than 25 years, CareOregon has offered health services and community benefit programs to Oregon Health Plan members. Today, we support the needs of more than 500,000 Oregonians through three coordinated care organizations, a Medicare Advantage plan, a Tribal Care Coordination program, a dental care organization, and in-home medical care with Housecall Providers. CareOregon members have access to integrated physical, dental and mental health care, and substance use treatment. We believe that good health requires more than clinics and hospitals, so we also connect members to housing, fresh food, education and transportation services. CareOregon is a mission-driven, community-based nonprofit with offices in Portland, Medford and Seaside, Oregon.