Pilsen invests in communication cards to help paramedics treat foreigners

They contain information in 5 languages (English, German, Russian, Vietnamese, Mongolian)

On 25 April, the Czech City of Pilsen announced that it has purchased and provided anamnestic health and language communication cards to the Medical Rescue Service of the Pilsen Region (ZZS PK). With these cards, paramedics will be able to treat people who do not speak Czech and those who are not able to talk as a result of their medical conditions.

Promoting integration

The municipality first invested in this communication tool in 2011 when it provided paramedics with these cards with the goal of promoting the integration of foreigners. Now, ZZS PK has asked for more cards to be printed as the war in Ukraine has resulted in a large influx of refugees. As such, all the vehicles of the Medical Rescue Service will now be equipped with these communication cards.

“Medical and language communication cards are translated into five language versions – English, German, Russian, Vietnamese, and Mongolian. Currently, the City of Pilsen has provided 80 sets of cards for the Medical Rescue Service of the Pilsen Region at its own expense,” explained Deputy Mayor Eliška Bartáková.

An example of a question in the communication card (Source: City of Pilsen)

The cards contain basic questions (in the aforementioned 5 languages) that allow paramedics to find out all the information that is necessary for a pre-hospital emergency. Some of these questions include, “Do you have a medical insurance card?”, “Do you remember what happened?”, and “Are you in pain?”.

"It is difficult to find a single communication tool for similar situations because the language skills and abilities of health professionals and patients are very different and in stressful situations, it is sometimes very difficult to find the right terms in the native language. These cards can serve as a crutch in communication," shared the head of PK ZZS, Jana Vidunová.