Barriers in cross-cultural communications in healthcare can originate from the interpreter, the physician and the patient. Different methods have been suggested to improve communication and internationally there are known to be pros and cons for using interpreters. Web-based language tools, especially the Google language tools (GLT), are commonly used for translation of journal articles and other online material for academic purposes. Over the last four years we have seen a number of patients from African countries, especially Burundi, who can speak French and their native Kirundi languages but not English. We, in India, generally have English as a second language and little proficiency in the French language. At times we do manage to get an interpreter, but more often than not, the doctor– patient communication tends to be tedious and unsatisfactory for both sides. We have therefore started using GLT at our centre so we can communicate with patients speaking a foreign language.
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Feroze Kaliyadan (2010) studied this question.