Interpreter Services

High quality, compassionate health care depends on clear and thorough communication. In fact, we believe every patient and family member has the right to be able to communicate easily with members of their medical care team. If you are Deaf, hard of hearing, or a non-English speaking patient or family member we provide access to several types of interpreter services, at no personal cost to you:

• Professional Spanish and American Sign Language interpreters are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for interpretations.
• In-person foreign language interpreters are available through contracted service partners for many languages commonly encountered in our community.
• Access to over 200 other languages is available with live, over-the-phone interpreters through our telephone service. View a chart with the languages commonly spoken in your community.
• Assistive listening devices and a closed-captioned TV are available for patients who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing. Video phones are also available. Please read about our page on Patients that Need Accommodations for instructions on how to obtain a video phone.
• CART (Communication Access Realtime Translation) services, also known as live captioning, are available to our deaf and hard-of-hearing patients who do not use American Sign Language. Services available upon request.

If you would like to express your interpreter preferences for your healthcare appointments, please contact us at: Interpreter_Services@urmc.rochester.edu, and let us know how we can best serve your needs.

Please call the Office of Interpreter Services at (585) 275-4778 to request an interpreter or ask any questions. For more information you may also view our printable brochure and contact card.

Our ASL Interpreter Patient Care Team

Our Deaf Professional Interpreter Team

Our Spanish Interpreter Team