inclusive health care Archives - CLEAR Global

When health information speaks your language: a movement to translate medical knowledge for all

Amal — Wed, 17 Dec 2025 10:00:00 +0000

Access to reliable medical information can be a matter of life and death. Yet for billions of people worldwide, health information remains locked behind language barriers. This is the challenge that Wiki Project Med Foundation (WPMEDF) set out to address when they launched MDWiki, a collection of health care articles ready to be translated into Wikipedia. With the help of Translators without Borders, CLEAR Global’s community of linguists, they’re making excellent progress.

From its inception, WPMEDF’s mission has been straightforward and ambitious: “To make clear, reliable, comprehensive, up-to-date educational resources and information in the biomedical and related social sciences freely available to all people in the language of their choice online and off.“

While speakers of powerful languages such as English enjoy abundant medical content online, the same cannot be said for speakers of many other languages.

A community-driven approach

The process begins with a small group of physicians who write and refine short summaries of key health topics in English. These articles are extensively reviewed, updated, and fully referenced before being stored on MDWiki.org, ready for translation. This is where the Translators without Borders community steps in, working to make this essential content available across nine languages. People who speak Vietnamese, Bulgarian, Swahili, Arabic, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Croatian, Turkish, and Czech now have resources available to understand more about their conditions, ailments, or preventive care.

The collaboration between WPMEDF and CLEAR Global represents a powerful model for democratizing medical knowledge. By connecting expert medical content creators with skilled volunteer translators, we’re bridging gaps that would otherwise leave millions without access to essential health information.

Learning and adapting

The journey hasn’t been without its challenges. When the project began in 2011, the team translated entire articles that were typically thousands of words long. This proved overwhelming for both content creators and translators. After receiving feedback from the Swahili community that they couldn’t maintain such extensive content, WPMEDF made a crucial pivot: focusing on three to four paragraph overviews instead. This shift allowed them to dramatically expand their scope and tackle a much broader range of topics.

Other lessons emerged along the way. Using simpler language in the source content proved essential, as many languages lack technical medical vocabulary. Since most translators, including those volunteering through Translators without Borders, are not healthcare professionals themselves, accessible language makes their crucial work possible. The team also learned that while machine translation can serve as a starting point for some translators, expert human translators remain indispensable for ensuring accuracy and cultural relevance.

Millions of views and growing

The numbers tell a compelling story. In-depth data available since 2021 shows that articles have accumulated more than 20 million pageviews, and over 1.2 million words have been translated as part of this project’s relaunch.

Translation is only part of the solution. The team also works to ensure content reaches those who need it most, even in areas without reliable internet access. They for example assemble and distribute Internet-in-a-Box (a miniature server that provides offline access to Wikipedia and MDWiki), they’re addressing the “last mile” problem, bringing medical knowledge to communities that would otherwise be completely cut off from these resources.

The long-term vision is ambitious but achievable: one goal is enabling all healthcare providers to study in their primary language if they choose. By reducing this barrier to becoming a healthcare professional, the project aims to improve healthcare access in the regions that need it most.

The collaboration continues to evolve and grow. What began as informal Wikipedia editing in 2007-2008 has developed into a structured, impactful initiative. After incorporating WPMEDF in 2012 and moving content to MDWiki in 2020 for better translation workflows, the project continues to refine its approach.

In an increasingly connected world, language should not determine whether someone can access life-saving medical information. Through the dedicated work of organizations like WPMEDF and the volunteer translators at CLEAR Global, this new vision is becoming a reality.

The post When health information speaks your language: a movement to translate medical knowledge for all appeared first on CLEAR Global.

Breaking down language barriers in oncology

Mariam Mohanna — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 15:47:53 +0000

Breaking down language barriers in oncology

The vital partnership between CLEAR Global and ecancer

“As an oncologist at ecancer, our collaboration with CLEAR Global/Translators without Borders has been transformative. Their expertise in translation ensures our oncology content reaches healthcare professionals globally.”
Dr Federic Bakal, Fundación Arturo Lopez Perez (FALP), Chile

CLEAR Global is proud to collaborate with partners dedicated to making a difference in the lives of people around the world. By supporting them in their missions, we can achieve our own – of helping people to get vital information and be heard, whatever language they speak.

UK-based charity ecancer is dedicated to improving cancer care globally through education. They believe cancer patients everywhere deserve the best care. By providing high-quality knowledge of cancer treatment, they help healthcare professionals to improve their skills, in contexts ranging from Latin America to India and Nepal and from Cambodia to Tanzania and Senegal. Increased access to resources and education leads to improvements in patient care.

Partner ecancer uses the Internet to share vital information in a range of languages

The organization hosts ecancermedicalscience, an open-access cancer journal that serves under-resourced communities. The journal’s goal is to help reduce global inequalities in cancer care and treatment by providing free access to all articles immediately upon publication.

The journal welcomes articles on a wide range of topics related to cancer, including molecular biology, genetics, epidemiology, and controlled trials, especially those that are independent or publicly funded. It also considers articles related to health systems, cancer policy, and regulatory aspects of cancer care. The comprehensive scope of ecancermedicalscience makes it an important platform for advancing research and knowledge in the fight against cancer, particularly in communities that might otherwise lack access to such resources.

Our partnership breaks down language barriers

“Thanks to TWB, we break down language barriers, improve accessibility, and empower diverse communities. This partnership reinforces our commitment to inclusive cancer care.”
Dr Federic Bakal, Fundación Arturo Lopez Perez (FALP), Chile

The partnership with Translators without Borders (TWB, now part of CLEAR Global) began nearly ten years ago, because ecancer were aware of the importance of language in reaching a global audience. They recognized that breaking down language barriers was crucial to achieving their mission. This understanding came from feedback received from readers, authors, and collaborators who struggled to access or understand content as a result of language issues.

Accurate translations help healthcare professionals stay informed about global developments, share their insights, and ultimately improve patient care. CLEAR Global’s partnership with ecancer is a way of removing the language barriers that block the spread of vital medical information on cancer care, enabling diverse communities to access cancer care information in their own language. This is in line with ecancer’s mission of offering complete, patient-centered cancer care and supporting healthcare professionals in delivering quality services to people affected by cancer globally.

Culturally appropriate translation helps expand access and build trust

To achieve this, ecancer adapted their approach, prioritizing key content for translation, working with language experts, and creating user-friendly multilingual interfaces. They focused on reaching out to diverse communities in languages such as English, Spanish, Hindi, Telugu, Bengali, French, German, Italian and Brazilian Portuguese.

Through its partnership with CLEAR Global, ecancer became even more aware of the role language and effective communication play in the medical field. Effective communication is more than just translation; it calls for a deep understanding of cultural differences, and adapting content accordingly. Working with language experts ensured that the content was translated according to the cultural and linguistic needs of target audiences. This led to better engagement and trust, facilitating meaningful interactions, knowledge sharing and collaboration in the global healthcare community.

In addition to content for healthcare professionals, the collaboration has extended to crucial patient-facing content. By translating and subtitling materials such as Relieving Cancer Pain at Home, The Cancer Patient’s Role in the Decision-Making Process, and resources on managing pain and the emotions that come with it, CLEAR Global and ecancer have made critical information directly accessible to cancer patients.

Oncology communication in Chile: a case study

Translation expands the influence of research findings from Latin America

The partnership also has the benefit of making the findings of research conducted in other languages available in English, enabling it to reach a wider audience and influence global practice. One such collaboration was the translation from Spanish to English of Knowledge, Practice, and Communication Barriers for Oncology Doctors in Chile When Addressing the Sexuality of their Patients.

This study examines the communication challenges oncologists in Chile face when discussing patient sexuality. Cancer and cancer treatment can greatly impact a patient’s sexual wellbeing, with consequences for their quality of life, self-image and relationships. That makes effective communication about sexual health an important aspect of oncology. The study highlights a gap between recognizing the importance of sexuality and actual clinical practice, revealing a need for institutional support and training to better integrate sexual health discussions into cancer care.

Volunteer linguists played a vital role

As the project relied on volunteer translators, the project manager, Giulia Gasperoni, sought out community members with experience in the medical field to ensure accuracy and quality. To maintain high levels of engagement and motivation, she ensured that community members had as much context and information as possible. When a community member claimed a translation task, Giulia reached out to share references and additional information. She also provided more background on ecancer and explained how the translated texts would contribute to its mission. Follow-up emails checked on the volunteers’ needs and offered assistance, making sure they knew their contribution was valued

“I am really glad that I was able to help on this project. I think this is such an important topic in today’s society and hopefully my translated words will help many people in both the present time and in the future.”

Suzanne Skirrow, TWB community member

In-kind sponsorship enabled specialist revision in a tight timeframe

Finding the right linguists from within the TWB community to revise the translation was a challenge for such a large and highly specialized text, especially as the deadline was tight. One of CLEAR Global’s in-kind sponsors, Surrey Translation Bureau, stepped in to offer the services of their linguists to complete the project.

Established in 1984, Surrey Translation Bureau has been an in-kind sponsor of CLEAR Global for several years, formalizing its support in 2021. This work forms part of STB’s corporate social responsibility framework, which aims to make a positive impact beyond the core business operations of the company.

“We were delighted to play a small part in ensuring cancer patients can receive the highest quality information. Our role was to check the overall accuracy and consistency of the English translation, ensuring the correct terminology was used – crucial for any text being used in the medical sphere. We’re proud to work with expert medical linguists who share our values and our translator appreciated the additional context provided by the ecancer team as this helped bring the material to life, improving the overall quality of the final text. To know we’ve played a part in improving the outcomes for cancer patients is incredibly rewarding to the whole team at STB.”

Amey Higgon, Head of Project Management at Surrey Translation Bureau

Volunteer with CLEAR Global

ecancer’s success in making vital cancer research accessible underscores the crucial contribution of volunteer translators. This work directly impacts healthcare professionals and patients, helping spread knowledge and foster collaboration globally.

CLEAR Global is proud to be able to offer a rewarding volunteer experience to our community members. Volunteering is a meaningful way to use your skills for the greater good while also joining a global community of dedicated individuals working to ensure people can get vital information and be heard, whatever language they speak. If you want to join the TWB volunteer community, you can register here.

The post Breaking down language barriers in oncology appeared first on CLEAR Global.

Learning lessons from the past – in your language

Mariam Mohanna — Wed, 24 Jul 2024 12:14:33 +0000

Learning lessons from the past - in your language

Evidence Aid’s partnership with CLEAR Global (Translators Without Borders)

While sitting on a train to Toronto, I’m struck by the linguistic diversity around me – a woman speaking Hausa to her child, a man speaking Québécois, two girls speaking Mandarin. Countries are becoming linguistic melting pots, increasing the need for multilingual communication. In the humanitarian field, recognizing the significance of language and its cultural context is increasingly important; effective communication is essential for sharing ideas, scientific breakthroughs and medical discoveries. With over 7,000 spoken languages worldwide, this mission is both awe-inspiring and daunting, yet organizations like Translations Without Borders (TWB) and Evidence Aid (EA) are stepping up to meet the challenge.

The Collaboration: Evidence Aid and Translators Without Borders/CLEAR Global

Let’s start with the impact. Between May 2023 and 2024, Evidence Aid’s resources have been viewed 95,483 times. The most frequently visited translated articles in both Italian and French were on Anemia and iron metabolism in COVID-19 patients, amassing 2,937 combined views. Similarly, the Spanish version of an article about Ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) containing low or no dairy compared to standard RUTF for children with severe acute malnutrition got 535 views, compared to the English version which got just 22 views. More broadly, Evidence Aid had 53,226 users in the past year, with Italy taking the lead with 3,616 users, followed by the United States with 3,503, Sweden with 3,010, and France with 2,179 users. Clearly, translations are crucial since Evidence Aid’s resources are accessed by a variety of countries.

Evidence Aid is a humanitarian organisation that improves the effectiveness of humanitarian efforts by offering free plain-language summaries of research, namely systematic reviews. This empowers stakeholders to make evidence-informed decisions. With 11 collections, Evidence Aid ambitiously covers a broad range of topics.

Their goal is to create easily readable and accessible summaries of systematic reviews, reducing the research workload for on-the-ground organisations and providing them with effective interventions and lessons from previous emergencies and disasters.

Recognizing that global issues demand global solutions, Evidence Aid saw the need for its summaries to be available in languages beyond English. Thus, the partnership between CLEAR Global and its global community, Translators without Borders (TWB) and Evidence Aid was born. Currently, Evidence Aid receives support to translate summaries from English into eight languages: Arabic, Chinese (traditional and simplified), French, German, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.

As noted above, the impact of this collaboration has been profound.

Clearly, evidence-based research has a significant audience and is actively being used. These statistics also highlight the value of translations, demonstrating their widespread use!

Global issues demand global solutions

TWB’s enhancement of key aspects of Evidence Aid’s offering goes beyond improving a feature of its product. Consider that the summaries are now eight times more accessible and comprehensible. Imagine if all research was available in this way; free to use, easy to understand and easily available in a central location.

CLEAR Global/TWB also supports and advises Evidence Aid on language inclusivity and accessibility more broadly. According to CSA research (forthcoming), half of the global population doesn’t speak the top seventeen most widely spoken languages. So, while CLEAR Global encourages EA to ensure that their work is accessible in the nine major languages, they also encourage EA to consider their audience and who they really want to be able to access their work. TWB encourages a shift in perspective, emphasising the importance of not just prioritising dominant languages associated with countries of power and authority. In a subtle but impactful way, this returns power and autonomy to marginalised and overlooked populations, giving them access to information that empowers them to make their own evidence-based decisions free from interference by dominant groups. Without the support of TWB, Evidence Aid’s audience would be eight times smaller, and accessible to eight times fewer people – let’s all learn lessons from this and make reaching as many people as we can a global priority!

Written by Jawaria (Jay) Karim, Evidence Aid

The post Learning lessons from the past – in your language appeared first on CLEAR Global.

Health care for all means leaving no language behind

Danielle — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 21:14:38 +0000

Health care for all means leaving no language behind

Inclusive health information solutions must work for everyone

Good health care and well-being are rights for all, but information and services are not currently accessible to all language speakers.

CLEAR stands for community, language, engagement, accountability, and reach. With the TWB Community of over 100,000 language volunteers, CLEAR Tech’s AI-driven language solutions, and CLEAR Insights’ research and partnerships, we’re set to change the way the world communicates. We’re making critical health care information more accessible. Join our call to speak up for language inclusion in 2024 – and read on to learn why it matters.

Language exclusion affects people’s lives, well-being, and development because it reinforces existing social, political, and economic inequalities. Four billion people who speak a non-colonial language are dangerously underrepresented, locked out of vital conversations that affect their health. In real terms, this puts people at risk. Like when they can’t access potentially life-saving information about their health care or well-being.

The stark truth is that those most disadvantaged or excluded by language include people at risk of poverty, women and girls, people with disabilities, older adults, and minorities. Globally, four and a half billion people were not fully covered by essential health services in 2021, and 25 million children missed out on important immunizations. With inclusive solutions, we can ensure we leave no one behind – whatever language they speak.

“At CLEAR Global, we help people to get lifesaving health care information and be heard, whatever language they speak.”

Tweet

Inequalities are widespread: why it’s time to focus on inclusion

Language is critical for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, specifically SDG 3, universal health coverage, and access to safe and affordable medicines and vaccines for all. 75 years ago, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights established everyone’s equal, fundamental rights – including the right to get and share information regardless of race, color, sex, or language. The rights are translated into over 500 languages, including Rohingya, for example. Yet the reality is far from equal, and the inequalities impact people’s health and well-being.

“If everybody was concerned about communication and tried to improve it, the entire health sector would improve with better services.”

- Doctor, Kutupalong refugee camp, Bangladesh Tweet

Nearly a million Rohingya speakers live in overpopulated refugee camps in Bangladesh. Our research shows their needs often remain unmet due to inadequate resources and staff to support communication.

Language challenges, cultural differences, and lower levels of health literacy among the Rohingya community can cause confusion, stress, and frustration for patients. These barriers present even more serious challenges and dangers when doctors can’t understand their patients, patients don’t understand medicine dosage instructions, and people who speak sign language go without an interpreter.

By supporting inclusive language solutions, we can help shift power structures. Why? So that people who already faced trauma and humanitarian crises can feel confident and respected in seeking health care. Inequalities persist worldwide, and exclusion disproportionately impacts the health and well-being of marginalized populations worldwide. People need accurate information via communications channels they trust:

Disinformation and misinformation worsen disease outbreaks and threaten public health.
Language barriers can be a major cause of disinformation. Comprehension of health information decreases by 78% when it is not available in someone’s native language.
When the pandemic began, dangerous misinformation including false cures spread quickly through refugee camps across the world, increasing mistrust and preventing many from getting professional treatment.
Misinformation and disinformation spread in 25 different languages across at least 87 countries, including the United States, leading to violence, deaths, and injuries.
In Bangladesh, Rohingya people reported negative and neutral experiences and made fewer visits to health centers. A mobile ban and information shortage made it difficult for aid workers to spread safe advice.
In Nigeria, people refused the COVID-19 vaccine because of frightening rumors.

When we focus on language inclusion, we can make sustainable development a reality. We can empower people to know and uphold their rights, and help everyone stay safe, heard, and well. If we include all language speakers in conversations that affect their health, we can make universal health care a reality.

“To bridge this gap and ensure equitable health care provision, addressing disparities is critical.”

- UN Tweet

Good health care and well-being are rights for all, but they’re not accessible to all language speakers.

Language inclusion means recognizing and respecting linguistic diversity and promoting multilingualism in all areas. It means ensuring people can get vital information and be heard in their language. CLEAR Global provides lifesaving information during health crises to help better manage disease outbreaks and deliver verified information. Our research, advocacy, data, and tech teams are helping make it possible with policies, practices, and technologies that respect and listen to diverse, marginalized voices. We research to understand people’s information and communication needs. Then we develop solutions and collaborate with verified, trusted responders to distribute health information in multilingual formats that work for affected people.

Our communication tools and AI language solutions empower people in local and global health emergencies to access information and services like health care. For linguistically diverse communities severely affected by public health crises, conflict, and disaster, we create accessible, trustworthy channels for people to make their voices heard. We believe that everyone, everywhere deserves access to critical healthcare they can understand.

Language research and innovative technology help

When we invest in language inclusion, we can make meaningful change. Inclusive, human-centered multilingual solutions are the key to understanding, and empowering people to make informed decisions and access critical health care information. That’s why we’re giving people the valuable opportunity to ask questions and get answers in their language. Inclusive UX research and design helps us understand target audiences’ needs and improve user experience. We work with organizations such as IOM, Oxfam, and WFP, in addition to local experts and grassroots organizations, to create innovative lifelines:

Our language dataset is invaluable for ensuring responders and communicators know what languages people understand.
Language research listens to communities’ experiences and perspectives to provide recommendations for humanitarians on engaging and communicating more effectively with the community on health issues and services.
CLEAR Global’s glossary apps improve communication between aid workers and affected communities in some of the world’s most linguistically diverse and challenging contexts.
The Bangladesh glossary is in English, Bangla, Burmese, Chittagonian, and Rohingya, with 300 terms on humanitarian aid, protection, return and relocation, health, MHPSS, gender, and more.
The COVID-19 glossary contains multilingual, plain-language terms to assist field workers and interpreters in engaging with communities and raising awareness.
Our conversational AI chatbots support access to information during health outbreaks, using natural language understanding to create the look and feel of a real conversation.
Shehu in Nigeria and Uji in the Democratic Republic of Congo enable people to get accurate answers to their questions on COVID-19 and Ebola in their language.

Making information more accessible for everyone

Language and communication toolkits help Ukraine responders and people supporting those affected by the Türkiye–Syria earthquakes effectively communicate and provide aid.
Practical language solutions, pictorial, written, audio, and video translations of key terms support conversations about health, mental health, psycho–social support, safeguarding, and more in languages.
Sign language video translations and definitions in our PSEA glossary and WFP Community Engagement glossary help responders and affected people communicate about preventing sexual exploitation and abuse, health care, and diseases in various contexts.
Captioning services, subtitles, and audio transcription support access for the deaf and people living with hearing loss, for example, InterAction’s PSEA It’s Everyone’s Responsibility animation in 13 languages, with localized images and subtitles.
Audio versions of our glossaries support people with visual impairments and people who have difficulty engaging with printed materials.
Plain language – makes reading health information easier for everyone regardless of their education, literacy level, or professional status. We offer training, editing services, and guidelines to help audiences find, understand, and use content.
Voice-powered information devices enable people in low-literacy and low-connectivity contexts to ask questions and receive audio and visual responses in their language, e.g., this Hindi project in India.

These vital language solutions help marginalized and vulnerable people, parents seeking medical aid for their poorly children, and the doctors trying to treat them.

Making meaningful change together

When humanitarian programs adopt inclusive language practices and locally relevant communications solutions, we can better prepare for and respond to global health crises.

In Kenya, we helped prioritize translations into Swahili to guarantee better information access and fight misinformation across the country. In Nigeria, our multilingual conversational chatbot with verified COVID-19 and Ebola information earned a 90.1% trust rate. In Bangladesh, our Rohingya language guidelines, and resources are helping spread accurate information and gain people’s trust in the system, so they feel comfortable seeking health support and treatment.

We’re seeing change around the world:

When humanitarian programs adopt inclusive language practices and locally relevant communications solutions, we can better prepare for and respond to global health crises.

"While in the early years, there were huge gaps between patients and providers, with commonplace misunderstanding and mistrust, in recent years awareness sessions and outreach activities largely improved mutual understanding.”

– Medical assistant, Camp 25, Bangladesh Tweet

“In early 2018 we faced challenges communicating with patients due to the language barrier. Pregnant women would assume that their baby would die if delivered at a hospital. Patients would not always take medication as prescribed by the doctor and sometimes take overdoses. Patients were unsure whether medications could help them or not, such as not being willing to take COVID-19 vaccines. However, through our counseling and awareness sessions during our outreach activities, we have improved these misunderstandings. Patients now realize that hospitals are not harmful to them, and the services we provide are meant to improve their health conditions.”

– Medical assistant, Camp 25, Bangladesh Tweet

"We are eager to apply these findings and to get a child-friendly safeguarding awareness-raising package out to the world that is empowering to children, protects them, and enables them to hold us accountable and seek justice when they have been harmed.”

– Mental health care provider, Kutupalong refugee camp, Bangladesh Tweet

"We are eager to apply these findings and to get a child-friendly safeguarding awareness-raising package out to the world that is empowering to children, protects them, and enables them to hold us accountable and seek justice when they have been harmed.”

– Melanie Ewert | Global Safeguarding, Senior Advisor | World Vision International Tweet

"This is of great value for Ukrainian local organizations, as the materials are available in the national language spoken by everyone in Ukraine.”

– Dmytro Skopienkov | Safeguarding Officer - Plan International Ukraine Tweet

“They helped us truly understand the challenges populations face, including details about their living conditions and health risks. At the same time, it helps us adapt our services to the local culture, and that includes being delivered in the local language.”

– San Bundgaard, IRC Tweet

Our critical research, advocacy, and data inform the humanitarian community of communication and information challenges, leading to changed humanitarian strategies. Extensive capacity strengthening and training on inclusive communication practices help global and local responders advocate for and meet people’s needs. It helps organizations representing and working with marginalized and vulnerable communities to promote effective two-way communication. Together, we can empower people to get vital health information, stay safe, and make their voices heard.

Language inclusion is essential for achieving the sustainable development goals and creating a more inclusive and equitable world. To achieve the SDGs, health information must be in the right language and format. This means ensuring health care providers can effectively communicate with patients, and that people can get answers to their questions easily. By promoting language inclusion in health care, we will make significant strides towards leaving no one behind.

– Written by Danielle Moore, Communications and Engagement Officer, CLEAR Global

Get involved – Speak up for language inclusion

You can make a difference

Donate today

A $25 donation can translate 250 words of key safeguarding, health, or climate change messages, making them accessible to people in new emergency contexts.
A $1,000 donation can adapt existing resources like pictorials to a new context in multiple languages, helping people understand vital information.
Learn more about the impact you can make.

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