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To the Editor: In their Research Letter documenting resident physicians' frequent use of children under the age of 12 years as interpreters in hospitals, Dr Weissman and colleagues¹ have touched on only the most visible aspect of children as family caregivers. In their study, 22% of the 2047 resident physicians surveyed used children as interpreters.

As the authors note, the inappropriate use of nonprofessional interpreters may compromise quality of care. Children do not have the medical vocabulary or health literacy to understand fully and communicate accurately to their ill relative or to other family members. They may be embarrassed or overwhelmed by having to ask sensitive questions or relay bad news. If they are pressed into service in hospitals, it seems likely that they have additional caregiving roles at home.

A national survey conducted by the National Alliance for Caregiving in collaboration with the United Hospital Fund estimated that 1.3 . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Carol Levine, MA
clevine@ufhnyc.org
United Hospital Fund
New York, NY

RELATED ARTICLE

Resident Physicians’ Use of Professional and Nonprofessional Interpreters: A National Survey
Karen C. Lee, Jonathan P. Winickoff, Minah K. Kim, Eric G. Campbell, Joseph R. Betancourt, Elyse R. Park, Angela W. Maina, and Joel S. Weissman
JAMA. 2006;296(9):1050-1053.
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