Communication is critical to positive healthcare outcomes. However, limited English proficient (LEP), deaf and hard of hearing patients often experience poorer quality care and outcomes due to language barriers. Compared to other patients, they have less access to preventive services and are less likely to adhere to healthcare plans.
Jacobia Solomon, President of Language Services at AMN Healthcare, is responsible for the leadership, strategic direction, vision, growth and performance of the business unit, which is designed to bridge these communication gaps.
“There is no equity without effective communication,” she tells Fierce Healthcare’s Rebecca Willumson.
“When I think about the opportunity of working with all of our stakeholders, not just payers, it's about ‘how do we best meet the patient where they are?’ The work we've done with payers is really about progressing health equity by normalizing the use of medically trained and qualified interpreters.”
During the conversation, Jacobia goes on to discuss what she looks for in payer partners to help generate better outcomes, a focus on and understanding of equity being critical to any partnership AMN engages in.
Hear more from Jacobia by tuning in to the full conversation.
Rebecca Willumson:
Hi there. My name's Rebecca Willumson. I'm the publisher of Fierce Healthcare and I'm here today with Jacobia Solomon, President, Language Services at AMN Healthcare. Jacobia, thank you for joining me.
Jacobia Solomon:
Thank you for having me. I'm really glad to be here.
Rebecca Willumson:
Jacobia, tell me, where do you see the greatest opportunity in working with payers?
Jacobia Solomon:
I think for us, there is no equity without effective communication. When I think about the opportunity of working with all of our stakeholders, not just payers, it's about ‘how do we best meet the patient where they are?’ The work we've done with payers is really about progressing health equity by normalizing the use of medically trained and qualified interpreters. Specifically, our focus is LEP, which is limited English proficient and deaf or hard of hearing communities. It's imperative that we are able to deliver care in the language that they have in regards spoken language or sign language.
It's collectively our responsibility that we collaborate with providers, ‘payviders’ and payers alike in delivering and ensuring equity across the entire spectrum of the healthcare journey for a patient. I think about, “What does that mean in our work and how do we activate action around that?” There's one key determinant in healthcare that is really critical and it's access to information. All of us are in the business of people helping people. And to be able to do that, you have to be able to exchange information.
It's imperative that patients and healthcare providers have comprehensive information around screening, around diagnosis of ailment, their treatment plan and anticipated outcomes. Sometimes that's a matter of life and death. Language Services is a very integral part of that.
There are lots of social determinants. I could be black, I could be gay, I can also be poor, but If I also speak Spanish or French or Haitian Creole, none of the other social determinants matter without that language first, because you cannot effectively communicate with me. You cannot engage me in my care.
Being able to achieve better outcomes to achieve health equity is very dependent on how effective we are able to communicate with each other. Language access is an integral part of health equity, and so it really hinges on how we deliver that throughout the spectrum of care.
Rebecca Willumson:
So tell me, what do you need from a payer partner to really make that relationship work?
Jacobia Solomon:
I believe that in order for a partnership to flourish, it's imperative that we are committed to health equity. And what I mean by that is ‘how we should be seeing health equity as not a matter of compliance, but more as a path to value to healthier outcomes—which equates to healthier communities and thereby healthier financials. It has to be something that's strategic.
How do we enable the strategies of our stakeholders to be present and to engage and activate resources, like having a dedicated chief health equity officer who can then activate investments and resources and technology? How do you measure the efficacy of health equity?
Health equity is a team sport, so it takes all of us. So how do we collaborate? What are those interaction points with providers, with payers, with partners like us to be able to increase the quality of care?
All in all, it really has to be a part of what we do. It has to be a part of every organization. For stakeholders, it has to be a part of their operations and their culture because it's our responsibility in this community. As we are progressing, I think about how do we effectively deliver health equity as a whole? How do I work with a payer in their quality department, their population health department, to really activate them around social disparities so that we can address and improve outcomes?
It can't be a side hustle job. It has to be integrated. So I will end in the way that I started, “you cannot have equity without effective communication.”
Rebecca Willumson:
So tell me more specifically, what solutions does AMN healthcare bring to the table to address or progress health equity?
Jacobia Solomon:
We offer creative solutions that really improve communications by breaking down barriers. We do that by video remote, over the phone, or in-person interpreting. We also offer written or digital translation.
We integrate with over 40 telehealth platforms. We are able to work with EHR systems like Epic, Cerner, and Meditech. That allows us to be able to identify, monitor, and track patients and their outcomes. And we do that in a streamlined way because integrations in healthcare are not fun if it is not your specialty, right? Your focus is on the patient as it rightfully should be. And so, we integrate and handle all of that data in the most efficient way possible because we need to get our focus back on patients.
I would say that our biggest piece, is how we advance equity by enabling strategies. If you do Language Access right, it's nets you higher reliability. That means a lot when you're talking about patient care, making sure they are safe in an efficient manner.
How do you do Language Services efficiently? We help you normalize the use of interpreters to be efficient at every access point and every consultation throughout that journey so that you have engagement, you build trust, and you have the right participation from your patient.
Ultimately, those are integral pieces of equity—the trust, the engagement, and the effective communication. We'll deliver those better outcomes.
Rebecca Willumson:
That feels like a perfect place to stop. Thank you so much for joining me today. I appreciate the conversation.
Jacobia Solomon:
I appreciate it. Thank you.