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Project Summary

The purpose of this community-based Medic One Foundation research is to test the potential use of new translation technologies to improve communication between firefighters and individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP). The project evaluates and compares a commercially available translation software tool designed specifically for EMS response with the more generic online statistical machine translation tool, Google Translate. We use evidence-based scenarios and conduct mock EMS response sessions with King County firefighters and Chinese and Spanish speaking LEP individuals. We aim to evaluate the accuracy and perceived usefulness of the two different translation technologies in assisting communications between firefighters and non-English speaking community members.