Use of translation cards to increase communication with non-English-speaking families in the NICU

Parents of infants in the neonatal intensive care unit report that communication with staff helps to relieve the many stresses they face. Particularly challenging for NICU nurses, however, is communication with non-English-speaking families. To improve this communication at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital in Nashville, illustrated cards have been developed to translate phrases commonly used in the nursery into foreign languages. Three different sets of cards provide translations in Spanish, Kurdish, and Serbo-Croatian (the languages most commonly encountered at this hospital), and a fourth set, in English, is used for individuals with hearing impairments. These cards aid the bedside nurse in giving a basic report and in encouraging parental participation in the infant's care. Nurses who have used the cards report that parents respond to the questions and seem to appreciate the attempt to communicate.