Blogs

AvantShield protects personal health information (PHI) through data anonymization. At Avantpage, we partner with health organizations around the country to improve patient care and health outcomes through translation and language access. Our national, state, and community health plans rely on us for data security. Keeping them in compliance and protecting personal health information (PHI) is our priority. That’s why, in 2019, our Systems Team developed a custom data anonymization tool that we call AvantShield. Using AvantShield protects member PHI during translation and allows organizations to safely reap the numerous benefits of translation memory (TM). Translation Memory – a Recap Using a TM for your translation work means that Avantpage saves every segment of approved translation delivered to your team. Next time you request a project, the file is run through our TM system and any repeated or similar text is instantly identified. Reusing previously-translated segments saves time, increases consistency, and reduces cost. What is Translation Memory?  What does PHI have to do with Translation Memory? In accordance with HIPAA regulations, Avantpage does not store PHI in our systems. But the kinds of files that typically contain PHI, such as member letters, are highly repetitive. This makes them great candidates for leveraging a TM. To exclude these files from a translation memory database would be a lost opportunity for process and cost optimization. This is where AvantShield comes in. AvantShield – PHI Masking AvantShield identifies the PHI contained within a file before it goes to our translation teams. Identified text is replaced by a tag that shows linguists the type of data that has been hidden. For example, a medical record number is replaced by @MRN@, the name of the member by @patient_name@, and so on. This greatly aids a translator by ensuring context is not lost during the masking phase. Once the macro has completed its task, the file is sent to translators through AvantFlow. After translated segments are approved by our editors and proofreaders, the text is exported to its original format (Word, Excel, etc.) for delivery to the client. During this final stage, the previously-masked PHI is restored by AvantShield so that the translated document contains the information needed for member communication.  AvantShield – PHI Destruction While this is similar to the process above, PHI destruction happens after projects are closed and submitted to the client. This is the point at which translations are saved in the translation memory. Before being saved for reuse, AvantShield is applied to identify PHI, this time for permanent removal. To preserve context for future reference, tags are used in the same way as above. The personal data removed during this stage cannot be restored and the translation memory is considered “clean” and ready for use. Consolidating Translation Memories If you are working with multiple translation vendors, chances are they each have a translation memory. In order to maximize the use of these tools, it is recommended to consolidate the translation memories at regular intervals. Avantpage provides this monthly service to our national health plans, and data anonymization is an important part of the process. During the consolidation, AvantShield verifies that no PHI remains in any of the vendors’ databases. A clean, secure TM is returned to all vendors for use in the coming month. Why use AvantShield? The primary reason to use AvantShield is to protect PHI. Our linguists are able to perform in-context, culturally-appropriate translations without ever viewing personal data. Before we created AvantShield, some of our clients chose to manually remove PHI from files before sharing with us. This is time-consuming, error-prone, and unnecessary. AvantShield helps you stay HIPAA compliant without losing time on manual tasks. With a clean translation memory, you continue to increase consistency, shorten delivery cycles, and save money, safe in the knowledge that your member data is 100% secure.

As Americans settle into the new reality of life under shelter-in-place directives, questions abound about how and when life will return to normal. When will I next sit down at a favorite restaurant? When will I board a plane again? Will my kids be returning to the classroom in 2020? Not least of these questions - how will I vote when November rolls around? This is a question very much on our minds at Avantpage. With our mission of empowering immigrant populations through language access, we worry about the impact of a changed election process on limited English speaking populations. With elections partners in Washington, California, New York, and Florida, we see different barriers affecting teams around the country. In our home state of California, we are already witnessing an increase in vote by mail (VBM), as a number of counties implemented the Voters Choice Act in 2016 and 2018. The shift in those counties from polling stations to Vote Centers aimed to make voting more convenient and flexible, expanding early voting and ensuring that every eligible voter received a mail-in ballot. This makes California more prepared than some for a shift to remote voting, but we are far from ready to implement this model across the entire state. From the translation standpoint, Avantpage is in conversation with county officials, and looks forward to more information on the following areas. Voter outreach
How do states and counties plan to adequately inform LEP citizens of changes to voting? This could be in written form, but are there also plans to provide in-language TV ads, public service announcements, and radio segments? Avantpage is seeing increased demand for these alternative language services and is well positioned to help in a variety of media. File types
Will a broader range of ballot types require translation, to accommodate remote voting? This is a great thing to add to your planning process, as well as the time required to reformat after translation and to potentially print and mail a higher number of ballots and voter guides than normal. Funding
Will budgets be adjusted to allow for increased mailing of foreign language ballots? As always, working with your translation provider to streamline processes and identify areas for cost savings is key. After translation, Avantpage provides customized breakdowns of spend that allow counties to bill candidates as needed. Our advanced reporting could be useful for emergency funding or other financial purposes in light of these exceptional circumstances. Planning
We know that elections teams are inundated with work. An election period is busy enough, without the uncertainty and reorganization required during this pandemic. We can not stress enough the importance of planning and keeping your providers in the loop. Avantpage encourages team meetings as early as possible and looks forward to contributing ideas and best practices at this time. If you're looking for help creating a translation plan for the upcoming election, please fill out our Contact Us Form, or email [email protected]

As the COVID-19 public health crisis sweeps across the globe, organizations of all types find themselves needing to communicate urgent messaging at unprecedented rates. Whether it’s patient information, school notices, election postponements, or workplace health and safety practices, digital communication is an essential tool in the fight to contain the novel Coronavirus. And with huge portions of the population under shelter-in-place directives, accessible, culturally-appropriate, and timely communication is as important as ever for immigrant and LEP communities.  Public agencies and healthcare organizations likely have partnerships in place for translating this COVID-19 related messaging. For those new to translation, the thought of creating a localization program from scratch at a time like this is understandably daunting. With so many moving parts to the communications process and a huge volume of frequent updates, there is a risk that translation will fall to already overburdened bilingual employees. It may be handled through ad-hoc and disjointed requests to multiple LSPs (Language Services Providers). Worse still, it may not happen at all, leaving limited-English speakers with an information gap that could prove disastrous.  The good news is that the challenge is by no means insurmountable. In fact, the written translation industry is already well situated to adapt to a 100% remote working model without any interruption to business operations. The tools and technologies available mean that accurate, consistent translation is achievable in a very short amount of time. The right translation partner will take the pressure off your staff and ensure that communications are clear and accessible. Now is the time to rely on that partner for an efficient process. Avantpage has identified six areas of concern, with simple solutions for your team. Terminology management
Inconsistent terminology leads to confusion at a time when clear messaging is essential. Ask your LSP if they have built COVID-19 glossaries in your threshold languages. This should be used by their translators and your reviewers, if you have an internal review process in place. Using Translation Memory (a database of previously-translated content) also provides this consistency and greatly shortens delivery by reusing text from previous projects. Centralization
Take a moment to look at your translation request process. If your teams are making requests ad hoc, they may be using different LSPs or individual translators, resulting in duplicated efforts and inconsistencies. Consider centralizing through one person/team, and ask your LSP about best practices. Avantpage offers free consultation in this area. Turnaround Times
Ask your LSP how they are shortening delivery cycles and processing after-hours requests/deliveries. Be sure that your teams understand the different options and associated costs, and consult with your vendor on best practices to ensure streamlined processing. This streamlining is essential not only during COVID-19, but for all of your translation needs. Bilingual Employees
Now more than ever is the time to recognize the pitfalls of relying on bilingual employees. With teams working from home and handling increased workloads, be sure you have an external solution that you can trust for your multilingual messaging. LSPs have access to linguistic assets and specialist tools not always available to your staff members. Safe handling of PHI
If you handle sensitive data or private health information (PHI), then your LSP should already comply with regulations such as HIPAA (Health Information Portability and Accountability Act). Now is no exception. If you are concerned about this, ask how they are ensuring compliance while their teams work remotely.  Reporting
It may not seem a priority now, but in the future you may want to see separate or comparison reporting for COVID and non-COVID translation projects. This helps plan for future situations, and, depending on your emergency funding, could help with grants or other financial programs. Ask your LSP if they are storing this information and will be able to provide reports now or at a later point. Your team is working harder than ever to fulfill their roles while adjusting to new work environments, scheduling increased video calls, and juggling family responsibilities. Not to mention keeping themselves safe and well at this time. By asking the right questions when it comes to translation, you’ll ensure they have one less thing to worry about. Working with the right LSP will improve your process and your messaging. And improved messaging keeps your LEP community safe and informed.  If you are looking for more information about the translation process, or need multilingual messaging now, please visit our website or contact [email protected].