Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Shane Klestinski | Spc. Dennis Tuna of Miami’s 260th Military Intelligence Battalion translates for a...... read more read more
Pembroke Pines, Fla - As the Florida Guard continues to support local and state partners in their efforts to expand COVID-19 testing capabilities around the state, the team of Guardsmen and medical professionals working at the COVID-19 Community Based Testing Site in Broward County are experiencing a new challenge. One of the most diverse communities in the country, the South Florida area is home to some residents whose ability to communicate in English can be limited and this can make the process of determining who meets the test’s criteria difficult.
The protocol that determines who needs to be tested for COVID-19 requires that everyone first answer screening questions based on CDC criteria. If their answers meet the criteria, they get a nasal swab that will establish if they are positive or negative for the virus.
Some of the screening questions asked are: Are you experiencing a fever, cough or shortness of breath? Have you recently traveled internationally? Do you know for certain if you’ve come in contact with someone infected with COVID-19?
The questions aren’t difficult, but if the medical screener and the potential patient don’t speak the same language, the conversation can be challenging – and that’s where the soldiers of the Florida Guard’s 260th Military Intelligence (MI) Battalion come into action. The soldiers of the 260th MI Battalion speak various languages that can be mission-critical when responding to a variety of emergency situations. Among the ranks of the 260th are soldiers who speak Spanish, Haitian Creole, Korean, Japanese, Portuguese and Italian.
Coronavirus testing began at Pembroke Pines’ C.B. Smith Park on Friday, and these soldiers are working at the park’s COVID-19 drive-thru screening station. When medical staff interviews someone who requests a COVID-19 test, if that person has difficulty communicating in English, the 260th MI soldiers step in to translate.
“They’re absolutely wonderful,” said Jada Blanchard, one of the registered nurses who conducts the interviews. “We wouldn’t make it without them.”
When they aren’t translating, the 260th MI soldiers provide security support, give drivers instructions to facilitate their screening, and direct traffic safely in and out of the screening station.
“Nobody ever expects to be in a pandemic situation,” said Sgt. Thomas Bowen, a 260th MI Battalion soldier who speaks Spanish and Italian, “but you get into situations when you never know when having a second or third language can help out, and this is one of them.”
For the soldiers from the 260th MI Battalion, ensuring that the testing facility is running smoothly and efficiently is paramount. However, their mission now also encompasses translation support to ensure medical providers and patients can communicate, and everyone has a positive interaction.
“When people arrive at the site, they want to know: ‘What’s going on?’” Bowen said. “We do our best to answer their questions in the language that makes them comfortable. Showing them that you care and that you’re human as well, helps the process run smoother.”
| Date Taken: | 03.20.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 03.21.2020 16:25 |
| Story ID: | 365648 |
| Location: | PEMBROKE PINES, FL, US |
| Web Views: | 331 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Florida National Guard Soldiers Provide Translation Support at South Florida COVID-19 Screening Site, by SFC Shane Klestinski, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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