Making a doctor’s appointment, visiting a physician or finding current health information can be confusing for children and adults unfamiliar with the U.S. health care system. Now, imagine the confusion for individuals who cannot speak English.
The University of Nebraska Medical Center McGoogan Library of Medicine wants to help. The library recently produced "Following the Clues: A Visit to the Doctor and the Library," a 12-minute video narrated in English, Spanish and Sudanese-Nuer that shows viewers how to navigate the health care system and find health information at the library.
"This is our gift back to the state," said Teresa Hartman, one of five McGoogan Library faculty members who spearheaded the production. "It’s what libraries should do – make sure information is understandable to the user."
The public service video, available in DVD or VHS format, follows Alana as she and her grandmother make a doctor’s appointment, see the doctor and find health information at the library. "The video explains how to access health care in our country, as well as signals to those not familiar with the U.S. system that we do it differently," Hartman said.
Funded by UNMC, the video is being distributed free to librarians, community health providers, immigrant support agencies and elementary school professionals. Although the content – aimed at elementary-aged students — is appropriate for unsupervised viewing by children, producers recommend that parents and children watch the video together.
"It’s extremely professional and well done," said Nancy Woelfl, Ph.D., director of the McGoogan Library, who would like to see it distributed nationally. "It’s a wonderful resource that works to eliminate health disparities by helping the most vulnerable populations gain better access to health care."
Dr. Woelfl recently gave a copy of the video to former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, M.D., Ph.D. Dr. Satcher, interim president of Morehouse School of Medicine, co-authored "Multicultural Medicine and Health Disparities," with Rubens Pamies, M.D., UNMC vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean of graduate studies.
"We wanted to do something that had a long-lasting impact," Hartman said. "There really was nothing available to help new populations understand and navigate through the health care system."
Said Siobhan Champ-Blackwell, Community Outreach Liaison for the National Network of Libraries of Medicine-Mid-continent Region: "This will fill a need for Sudanese refugees who are trying to navigate the U.S. medical system."
"It’s fabulous to have a resource that creates a clearer understanding of how the medical system works," said Aura Whitney-Jackson, community liaison – South Omaha Community Partnership. "For many people the system is different from where they came from, so anything we can do to make it easier for people in general is great."
Production crews spent two days last March filming at The Lied Transplant Center, the South Omaha Neighborhood Association clinic (now known as the UNMC Community Health Center), and the McGoogan Library.
"Following the Clues" was produced and written by the McGoogan Library of Medicine Diversity Project team of Alison Bobal, Heather Brown, Marty Magee, Cindy Schmidt, M.D., and Hartman. Principal actors included Emma Bradley, Steve Bridges, Rina Evelyn, Marty Magee, Alana Myles, Veronica Rivera and Cindy Schmidt, M.D. Directed by Paul Kawacz and Mike Moehring; edited by Paul Kawacz and Jeff Stevens; graphics by Katheryn Warzak and Bill Wassom; narrated by Margaret Bumann (English), Nicolas Mirman (Spanish) and Bern Yuot (Sudanese-Nuer). Spanish translation by Sergio Diaz and Nicolas Mirman; and Sudanese-Nuer translation by Cyracom International, Inc.
A streamed version of the video is available on the Internet at http://www.unmc.edu/library/clues/. Committee members will make the movie available by pod cast this summer.
For more information, to inquire about availability of the video in other languages, or to obtain a copy, contact the McGoogan Library at 402-559-6221 (Omaha metro) or 1-866-800-5209 (toll-free) or visit the McGoogan Library Web site at www.unmc.edu/library/clues.