Handbook of Language in Public Health and Healthcare

An interdisciplinary overview of theory, history, and leading research in the field

With a joint linguistic and medical perspective, The Handbook of Language in Public Health and Healthcare explores innovative approaches for improving clinical education, clinician-patient communication, assessment, and mass communication. Contributions by a diverse panel of experts address a wide range of key topics, including language concordance in clinical care, medical interpreting, the role of language as a social determinant of health, reaching linguistically diverse audiences during public health crises, assessing clinician language skills, and more.

Organized into five parts, the Handbook covers the theory, history, and context of linguistics, language interpretation and translation, language concordance, medical language education pedagogy, and mass communication of health information with linguistically diverse populations. Throughout the text, detailed chapters present solutions and strategies with the potential to improve the health and healthcare of linguistically diverse populations worldwide.

In an increasingly multilingual, global society, language has become a critical area of interest for advancing public health and healthcare. The Handbook of Language in Public Health and Healthcare:

• Helps professionals integrate language-appropriate communication in healthcare settings
• Addresses clinician-patient communication, assessment, research, and mass public health communication
• Offers key theoretical insights that inform the intersection of language, public health, and healthcare
• Highlights how various approaches in the field of linguistics have enriched public health and healthcare practices

The Handbook of Language in Public Health and Healthcare is essential reading for undergraduate, postgraduate, and professional students of applied linguistics, health communication, and medicine. It is also an invaluable reference for language educators, clinicians, medical educators, linguists, health policy experts, and researchers.

Pilar Ortega, MD, MGM, is Vice President, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Departments of Emergency Medicine and Medical Education. Dr. Ortega co-founded the National Association of Medical Spanish and the Medical Organization for Latino Advancement.

Glenn Martínez, PhD, MPH, is Dean of the College of Liberal and Fine Arts and Professor of Spanish, Bicultural/Bilingual Studies, and Public Health at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Dr. Martínez's research focuses on sociolinguistics and applied linguistics of Spanish-speaking communities in the United States and along the US-Mexico border.

Maichou Lor, PhD, RN, is Assistant Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Nursing. Dr. Lor's research focuses on reducing health disparities through improving health communication between healthcare providers and patients, specifically patients with low health literacy and/or limited English proficiency. She is a board member of the National Council on Interpreting in Health Care.

A. Susana Ramírez, PhD, MPH, is Associate Professor of Public Health Communication at the University of California, Merced. As an infodemiologist, Dr. Ramírez applies communication science to advance public health goals. She is an internationally recognized expert on media, inequality, and health.