BCAT News

With more Burlington residents speaking languages other than English, Burlington moved forward with a plan Monday night to pilot a translation service to help first responders better communicate with more residents. 

“Burlington is becoming a much more diverse community, which is a good thing, but there are some folks in this community that have needs it’s hard to meet,” said Christine Shruhan, Executive Director of Burlington Youth and Family Services. “One of the thoughts was for the town to begin to offer or to purchase a translation service, in particular for police, fire, Council on Aging, and Youth and Family Services, as well as the Board of Health, where they come into contact with people who are struggling and are not able to understand what’s happening and meet the need.” 

Through the program, an EMT or a police officer could quickly hop on a video call or phone call, in the field, in the back of an ambulance, or in a Town Hall office, and be able to communicate instantly with someone in crisis. 

“Fire Chief [Andy Connerty] said when they have someone in the back of the ambulance who doesn’t speak English, they can’t tell the paramedic what’s bothering them, what hurts, where they’re injured,” said Select Board Member Jim Tigges. “ I think this is a great way to get communication out to all of our residents.” 

Tigges said the service costs about $1 to $1.25 per minute, depending on the language. The town plans to use federal ARPA funding, which expires in December of this year, for a brief pilot to see how town agencies use the service, how well it works, and how much it might cost to fund it in an ongoing way.

The idea for the pilot program came recently, when Burlington suffered three completed suicides and one attempted suicide all in the same week. The Community Response Team, which comprises representatives from Burlington’s various emergency and resident services agencies, got together to talk about it. 

“Jim [Tigges] and I were talking, we heard about the tragedies, and it just hit us like a brick,” said Select Board Vice Chair Mike Espejo. “Three in one week, our neighbors, our friends. Mental health plagues not only Burlington but the nation. I’ve been trying to think how we can help promote good mental health, and I’ve felt helpless. … Out of such a bad, tragic week, at least we’ve learned from the Community Response Team, this is a real need not only from Youth and Family Services but the Council on Aging, Police, and Fire. From the Community Response Team meeting this came out as ‘Hey, I need that too.’ It’s another wonderful example of how collaboration can get things done.”

Burlington will pilot a system that’s currently being used at Lahey Hospital and Medical Center to connect to Certified Medical Interpreters speaking a total of 103 languages. Lahey has offered to give town representatives information and demonstrations about their service as the town rolls out its own.