In global healthcare, communication is no longer a one-way street. Patients and caregivers across the world expect—and deserve—to understand their diagnoses, their options, their risks, and their treatments. Yet healthcare content is often written in highly technical language, shaped by scientific conventions that prioritize precision over accessibility.
This is where health literacy–focused translation becomes not just a linguistic task, but an ethical one. And when done well, it empowers shared decision-making: the process in which patients, together with clinicians, actively participate in choices about their own care.
In this article, we explore how translation supports health literacy, why this matters across cultures, and what shared decision-making really requires from linguists and medical communicators.
Health literacy is not simply “reading ability”—it is the ability to understand, process, and use health information to make informed decisions. This includes:
Understanding diagnoses and conditions
Interpreting risks and benefits
Following instructions and safety guidance
Knowing what questions to ask
Feeling confident enough to participate in care decisions
When health information crosses borders and languages, new layers of complexity emerge: cultural norms, levels of education, readability expectations, formatting preferences, and even the tone of voice.
High-quality translation reduces these barriers. Poor translation reinforces them.
Clinical content often relies on:
Long, nested sentences
Latin- or Greek-derived terminology
Ambiguous or hedged language (e.g., “may be associated with”)
Implicit assumptions (e.g., “talk to your healthcare provider”)
Region-specific health behaviors
Even in its original language, this can be challenging for patients. When translated literally, the issues multiply: loss of meaning, unnecessary complexity, and grammatical structures that do not align with the target language’s natural flow.
For example:
Risk phrases may need cultural adaptation to express urgency without fear.
Dosage instructions may need clarity to avoid misinterpretation.
Anatomical or physiological terms may need reformulation into plain language without compromising accuracy.
Translators working with patient-facing content must master this balance.
Health literacy is shaped not just by language but by culture.
Consider how different cultures perceive:
medical authority (trusting, questioning, deferential, collaborative)
direct vs. indirect communication
the appropriateness of discussing illness openly
family involvement in care
stigma around specific conditions
A patient leaflet in one country may empower a patient to ask questions; in another, it may unintentionally create confusion or appear disrespectful.
This is why cultural competence is a core component of health-literacy translation. It requires awareness of:
✔ idioms and metaphors
✔ reading conventions
✔ numeric comprehension
✔ tone (formal/informal)
✔ regional health behaviors
✔ social expectations around decision-making
Shared decision-making (SDM) is more than a trend—it’s a global shift in healthcare. SDM means:
Patients and clinicians working together to choose tests, treatments, and care plans, based on evidence and on the patient’s preferences and values.
But SDM cannot happen when patients do not understand the information provided to them.
Translation plays a critical role in making SDM possible.
Clear explanations of the condition
Without jargon or assumptions.
Balanced descriptions of risks and benefits
Using language that patients can interpret meaningfully.
Structured comparisons between treatment options
Including what matters most to people: cost, side effects, burden of treatment, lifestyle fit.
Actionable prompts
What to ask. What to expect. What to report.
Respectful tone
Encouraging patients to express preferences, not simply comply.
Support for caregivers
Who often become co-decision-makers in chronic conditions or pediatric care.
Effective health-literacy translation requires:
Break long clinical statements into manageable units.
Use plain language equivalents whenever medically safe.
Patients should never wonder whether two different terms mean the same thing.
Ensure the content resonates with real-life scenarios in the target region.
Start with essentials, then expand for those who want more detail.
Bullets, headings, white space, and simple diagrams dramatically improve understanding.
These strategies help transform technical, complex content into a form patients can use—not just read.
Health-literacy translation is multifaceted and requires:
Expertise in medical content
Awareness of cultural context
Sensitivity to patient experiences
Knowledge of regulatory requirements
The ability to rewrite without distorting meaning
It is not simply translation—it is education, risk reduction, and patient empowerment all at once.
Investing in this expertise improves:
✔ adherence
✔ safety
✔ patient satisfaction
✔ quality of care
✔ health outcomes
These are not linguistic benefits; they are clinical ones.
Health literacy is no longer optional in global healthcare—it is a determinant of health.
And translation is how health literacy travels across borders.
When we give patients and caregivers the words they need, we give them:
understanding
confidence
participation
safety
improved outcomes
Shared decision-making begins with shared meaning.
That is the power of health-literacy-focused translation.