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Open research questions in Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare

209 gap statements mined from Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare papers in our 7.9M-paper local library, which holds 1,719 papers on the topic — drawn mostly from each paper's own stated research gap, future-work, challenge and limitation notes, and its abstract. The ones listed below are a selection still marked open; each names the study that raised it, with a DOI link where the paper has one.

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What the literature leaves open

  • Further research on EP forms of address and their nexus to unstable values of politeness would benefit from this view that speakers operate in social contexts and make their choices in a continuum ranging from established scripts of verbal behaviour to ‘agentive’ creativity.

    Perceptions of Forms of Address in European Portuguese in Online Metadiscourse or What Happens When You Use você in Court · 2024 · DOI

  • However, little is known about the reasons for selecting specific interpretation modalities in intensive care units (ICUs) and acute inpatient care settings.

    When In-Person Interpretation Matters: Perspectives From ICUs and Acute Inpatient Care Settings · 2026 · DOI

  • Despite the presence of common practices for the collection, documentation, and use of data on patient interpretation needs, the lack of standardization limits the exchange of this information among health systems.

    Electronic Health Record Data Collection Practices to Advance Standardization and Interoperability of Patient Preferences for Interpretation Services: Qualitative Study · 2024 · DOI

  • Professional interpreting services are emphasised in UK guidance, but evidence on how policy-makers and commissioners deliver these services is lacking.

    Commissioning, Implementation and Policy Perspectives on Interpreting Services in UK Primary Care: A Qualitative Study · 2026 · DOI

  • The UK was seen as world-leading in interpreting provision, however fragmentation, lack of standardisation, accountability gaps, funding constraints within a publicly-funded healthcare system, and varied interpreter competencies and renumeration led to inconsistency in delivery.

    Commissioning, Implementation and Policy Perspectives on Interpreting Services in UK Primary Care: A Qualitative Study · 2026 · DOI

  • Despite increasing reliance on interpreter services, little is known about how bilingual pharmacy trainees experience interpreter-only policies.

    Hispanic pharmacy students’ perspectives on institutional policies requiring certified Spanish interpreters: A qualitative study · 2026 · DOI

  • This language discordance is known to contribute to nonadherence to diabetic care, but its role in non-adherence among patients with DR has not been studied.

    Interpreting Services Bridge Language Gaps in Diabetic Retinopathy Care: A Retrospective Cohort Study · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research will explore the motivations for code-switching related to the dual objectives of medical consultations: interpersonal, i.

    Two Languages, One Goal: Code-Switching in Doctor–Patient Communication in the Galician Healthcare System · 2024 · DOI

  • These results should be further explored using wider data samples that are more thoroughly quantified.

    Gestural Alignment in Spoken Simultaneous Interpreting: A Mixed-Methods Approach · 2024 · DOI

  • However, it remains unclear whether there are differences in the ways medical practitioners and medical interpreters perceive the importance of various communication skills of medical interpreters.

    Communication Skills of Medical Interpreters: A Qualitative Explanatory Study of Healthcare Professionals’ and Medical Interpreters’ Perceptions · 2024 · DOI

  • Future studies should also move beyond educational and healthcare settings to explore a wider range of contexts, such as refugee camps and migration centres, where CLB is likely to be prevalent but remains largely under-researched.

    Mapping the field: a systematic review of non-professional interpreting and translation in Italy. · 2026 · DOI

  • The study suggests the need for further research on the effectiveness of training programs for LDL interpreters. It recommends exploring ways to expand language coverage and strengthen mentorship opportunities. The study highlights the importance of integrating interpreter training more fully into the public healthcare system.

    From Training to Practice: Evaluating the Role and Training of Lesser Diffusion Languages Interpreters and Mediators in Healthcare Services · 2026 · DOI

  • The lack of specific legislation in Spain that guarantees the right to language assistance. The need for continuous professional development for LDL interpreters. The challenges faced by LDL interpreters, including limited language-specific feedback and inconsistent access to supervisory support.

    From Training to Practice: Evaluating the Role and Training of Lesser Diffusion Languages Interpreters and Mediators in Healthcare Services · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a lack of federal laws in Germany that mandate the use of professional interpretation services in healthcare. The use of children as interpreters is not regulated in Germany.

    “Ich verstehe es nicht”: the necessity of integrating professional interpretation into the German healthcare system · 2026 · DOI

  • One challenge is the linguistic heterogeneity of Latino families. Another challenge is the prevalence of negative attitudes toward Latinos and the monolingual language ideology of the United States. A third challenge is the need for practitioners to develop deep functional awareness of language and cultural boundaries.

    What Clinicians Should Listen for in the Speech of Latino Families: Communicative Concordance · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a lack of understanding of the linguistic backgrounds of Latino families. Practitioners may unintentionally raise communicative barriers due to layperson's misconceptions about language. There is a need for a linguist's perspective on language to optimize service to Latino families.

    What Clinicians Should Listen for in the Speech of Latino Families: Communicative Concordance · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research should replicate this corpus-based methodology across other language pairs, interpreting settings, and levels of interpreter expertise to test the broader applicability of the present findings. It would also be valuable to examine additional indicators of simplification and explicitation, particularly at the discourse, pragmatic, and interactional levels.

    Simplification and Explicitation in Simultaneous Interpreting: Evidence from a Corpus of Arabic–English Conference Interpreting · 2026 · DOI

  • Introduction Patients hospitalized with heart failure who do not speak English as their primary language face communication barriers, however the impact on documented History of Present Illness (HPI) and Review of Systems (ROS) has not been reported.

    Language-Related Disparities in History Documentation in Patients Admitted for Heart Failure · 2026 · DOI

  • The distinction between language access and language comprehension is not recognized. The gap in language access perpetuates disparities in health care.

    Beyond Translation: Indigenous Language, Obstetric Consent, and Patient Safety in Hispanic Health Care · 2026 · DOI

  • Embedding Deaf cultural responsivity in health-professional education, standardizing provision of interpreting services, and integrating culturally safe communication pathways are critical first steps toward advancing health equity for this underrecognized group.

    Experiences of culturally Deaf people with health care access and navigation in Ontario, Canada: a qualitative co-design study · 2026 · DOI

  • The problem of communication barriers is not limited to any one country or healthcare system.

    Deaf queers in the healthcare system · 2025 · DOI

  • These findings complement the mixed evidence on imaging utilization in languagebarrier patients.

    Language barriers in acute care in pediatric traumatology — Level 1 trauma center analysis · 2026 · DOI

  • About one-third reported insufficient information about care and treatment, while approximately one fourth felt excluded from decision-making.

    Navigating in silence: A mixed methods study exploring the experiences of patients with hearing loss in Danish hospitals · 2026 · DOI

  • Communication failures in high-stakes settings, such as obstetric care. Misclassification of Indigenous patients as “Spanish-speaking”. Gaps in clinician training and misaligned incentives.

    Beyond Translation: Indigenous Language, Obstetric Consent, and Patient Safety in Hispanic Health Care · 2026 · DOI

  • The study identifies a gap in the understanding of the characteristics of accelerated criminal procedures in France and the potential difficulties in interpreting in Polish.

    Le discours judiciaire oral en comparution immédiate : analyse jurilinguistique et enjeux de l’interprétation du français vers le polonais dans une approche comparative · 2026 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare

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Open questions raised by papers listed on this page include: (1) Little is known about the reasons for selecting specific interpretation modalities in intensive care units (ICUs) and acute inpatient care settings (“When In-Person Interpretation Matters: Perspectives From ICUs and Acute…”, 2026); (2) Professional interpreting services are emphasised in UK guidance, but evidence on how policy-makers and commissioners deliver these services is lacking (“Commissioning, Implementation and Policy Perspectives on Interpreting Services…”, 2026); (3) Despite increasing reliance on interpreter services, little is known about how bilingual pharmacy trainees experience interpreter-only policies (“Hispanic pharmacy students’ perspectives on institutional policies requiring…”, 2026); (4) This language discordance is known to contribute to nonadherence to diabetic care, but its role in non-adherence among patients with DR has not been studied (“Interpreting Services Bridge Language Gaps in Diabetic Retinopathy Care: A…”, 2026); (5) Future studies should also move beyond educational and healthcare settings to explore a wider range of contexts, such as refugee camps and migration centres, where CLB is likely to be prevalent but remains largely under-researched (“Mapping the field: a systematic review of non-professional interpreting and…”, 2026). 209 gap statements have been mined from Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare papers in our 7.9M-paper local library, which holds 1,719 papers on the topic; the gaps come from whichever of those papers state one. They are mostly the research gaps the authors state and the papers' abstracts, plus future-work, limitations and challenges passages. The ones listed below are a selection still marked open; each names the study that raised it, with a DOI link where the paper has one, so you can read the original claim in context.

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