Free bilingual reference materials and community workshops that help immigrant families navigate the American emergency medical system with confidence. Post the sheet by your phone. Carry the card in your wallet. Practice with the workshop. Know your rights.
A bilingual reference sheet you print and post by your phone. One side tells you what to do; the other side reminds you of your rights. Fill in your address and medical info so it’s ready before an emergency happens.
Two formats, one goal: help you feel prepared. The reference sheet goes on your fridge or by your phone. The wallet card folds up and goes wherever you go. Both are fully bilingual — English and your language side by side.
We’re looking for volunteer translators and native-speaker reviewers for the languages below. Know one of them? We’d love your help.
Under federal law (EMTALA), hospital emergency rooms are required to screen and stabilize anyone who seeks emergency care, regardless of immigration status, insurance, or ability to pay.
Hospitals that receive federal funding are required to provide interpreter services at no cost to the patient. You have the right to understand your care. Do not rely on children to interpret.
911 dispatchers and emergency medical personnel generally do not ask about immigration status. Your medical information is protected under federal privacy law (HIPAA).
A 90-minute bilingual workshop with hands-on practice: role-play a 911 call, learn what to expect from EMTs, and walk through your rights.
Distinguish a 911 emergency from an urgent care visit, a doctor appointment, or a pharmacy trip. Scenario card sorting exercise.
Practice a step-by-step 911 call, learn key English phrases, request an interpreter, and fill in your reference sheet with personal information.
What EMTs look like and ask, what happens in the ambulance, and how the emergency department works from arrival to exam room.
EMTALA, interpreter rights, immigration and HIPAA protections, billing basics. True/False exercise to reinforce key protections.
Full role-play rotation with 911 dispatch simulation, reference sheet review, basic first aid awareness, and post-workshop survey.
Are you an ESL instructor, community health worker, or immigrant services organization? We provide everything you need to run this workshop in your community.
All materials are open-licensed. Download them, translate them into your students’ languages, and run the workshop in your own classroom.
Integrate the reference materials into your health literacy curriculum. The workshop modules are designed for beginner-to-intermediate English learners with facilitation notes for bilingual delivery.
Distribute printed reference materials at health fairs, community centers, and home visits. The reference sheet is designed to be filled in with personal information and kept permanently.
Add the workshop to your orientation programming for new arrivals. Adapt materials to your community’s languages using our open-source template. Contact us for support.
Whether you want to host a workshop, volunteer as a translator, or adapt this toolkit for your community.
Help us expand to Nepali, Khmer, Farsi, Russian, Portuguese, and more.
Bring the workshop to your library, school, church, or community center.
