JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

The advent of new rehabilitation and assistive technologies has led to the creation of Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) as an accessible communication technology for deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) patients. While there has been a rapid growth in the use of VRI technology by healthcare providers, there is scant published information on VRI users and their satisfaction. Current, timely data is needed to understand D/HH patients’ use and satisfaction with the quality of VRI technology in healthcare settings.

Objective:

To investigate the national trends of D/HH patients’ satisfaction with the quality of video remote interpreting (VRI) in health settings and recommend actions to improve VRI quality and D/HH patient satisfaction with using VRI in healthcare settings.

Methods:

Secondary data related to D/HH adults’ experiences with using VRI service in medical setting was drawn from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) in American Sign Language that was administered to an U.S. sample of D/HH adults between 2016 and 2018.

Results:

In our VRI-user sample (N=555, all in the United States) who answered questions about VRI usage in health between 2016 and 2018, only 41% were satisfied with the quality of VRI technology service. Respondents with fewer years of education or those who were male were more likely to rate VRI quality as acceptable. After adjusting for covariates in a binary regression analysis, D/HH patient’s self-reported interference of VRI with disclosure of health information increased patient dissatisfaction with the quality of VRI technology service by threefold.

Conclusions:

To increase D/HH patient satisfaction with VRI technology service in healthcare and rehabilitation settings, special attention needs to be given to video technology, as the use of sign language requires high fidelity video for optimal communication between the interpreter and patient. To promote the D/HH patient’s willingness to disclose medical information through VRI, the interpreter must be highly skilled in both expressive and receptive communication and have the requisite background in medicine and rehabilitation.