Language Needs Assessment
Language Needs Assessment
The 2016 Language Needs Assessment provides Virginia’s 35 Local Health Districts (LHDs) with guidance on providing interpretation services and translated materials to patients and clients. The report identifies limited English proficient (LEP) populations in each district and outlines recommendations for the district to address local language barriers and increase health care quality to all LEP patients while meeting all federal requirements. The report, conducted by the Virginia Department of Health’s (VDH) Office of Health Equity (OHE,) includes data on the LEP population using data from the US Census Bureau’s 2013 5-year estimates from the American Community Survey, along with data from the Virginia Department of Education and the Virginia Department of Health’s Webvision service.
Four Factor Analysis
The Language Needs Assessment includes a review of four factors–the Four Factor Analysis–to guide LHDs in meeting these mandates and to provide recommendations for providing translated materials and interpretation services. The four factors are:
- The number or proportion of LEP residents within each district,
- The frequency with which LEP individuals come into contact with VDH programs,
- The nature and importance of the program, activity or service provided by the recipient (VDH) to its beneficiaries, and,
- The resources available to the grantee/recipient (VDH) and the costs of interpretation/ translation services.
For more detailed information on the methods and data behind each factor, visit the Language Needs Assessment Methodology page or the Translation & Interpretation Recommendations page.
Interactive Dashboards
The 2016 Language Needs Assessment presents data related to each factor using a series of interactive, online dashboards. These dashboards allow LHD staff to explore the data and to make comparisons with other LHDs. Explore our dashboards on the following pages:
Limited English Proficient (LEP) Population
Limited English Proficient (LEP) Students
LHD Patients, Visits & Teleinterpretation
Translation & Interpretation Recommendations
2016 Recommendations
The 2016 Language Needs Assessments includes the following recommendations for onsite interpretation and/ or bilingual staff and written translation of vital documents each health district listed below.
Further Information
For further information on the Language Needs Assessment: