Prescription labels only in English

CHICAGO, May 28 (UPI) -- One-third of U.S. pharmacies cannot translate any prescription labels into Spanish, U.S. researchers found.

Researchers at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago conducted a study to investigate the ability of pharmacies to translate prescription labels in Texas and Colorado, with large existing Latino populations, and Georgia and North Carolina, with growing Latino populations.

Lead author Stacy Cooper Bailey and colleagues surveyed 764 pharmacies, including national chains, in Texas, Colorado, Georgia and North Carolina.

The study, scheduled to be published in the June issue of the journal Medical Care, found 34.9 percent could not offer any translation services; 21.7 percent offered only limited translation services; and 43.3 percent said they could provide translated instructions. Of the total, 28 percent were independent pharmacies and 72 percent were part of national, regional or state chains.

"The lack of translation for prescription medication instructions is a major problem," Bailey said in a statement. "If you don't know how to take your medications correctly, it is going to be difficult for you to manage your medical condition. Taking medications incorrectly could cause serious problems or even death."

Availability of translations is likely to be even worse for people who speak a language other than Spanish, Bailey said.

"We have to be able to provide medication instructions in multiple languages, even beyond Spanish," Bailey said.