NIDCD LANGUAGE ACCESS

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

2014 
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TABLE OF CONTENTS

OVERVIEW OF IC FUNCTION AND RELATIONSHIP TO LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT 

INDIVIDUALS.......................................................................................................................................................... 1

STAFFING REQUIREMENTS ............................................................................................................................... 3

PLAN RESOURCES................................................................................................................................................. 4

PERFORMANCE MONITORING ......................................................................................................................... 5

ELEMENTS AND ACTION STEPS ....................................................................................................................... 6

ELEMENT 1: ASSESSMENT OF NEEDS AND CAPACITY ............................................................................. 7

ELEMENT 2: ORAL LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE SERVICES ........................................................................11

ELEMENT 3: TRANSLATION OF WRITTEN MATERIALS........................................................................13

ELEMENT 4: POLICIES AND PROCEDURES................................................................................................15

ELEMENT 5: NOTIFICATION OF THE AVAILABILITY OF FREE LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE 

SERVICES ..............................................................................................................................................................16

ELEMENT 6: STAFF TRAINING ON THE PROVISION OF LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE SERVICES ...18

ELEMENT 7: ASSESSMENT OF ACCESSIBILITY AND QUALITY OF SERVICES ................................. 19

ELEMENT 8: STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION.........................................................................................21

ELEMENT 9: DIGITAL INFORMATION.........................................................................................................22

ELEMENT 10: GRANTS ASSURANCE AND COMPLIANCE.......................................................................23

APPENDIX A: APPROVAL................................................................................................................................. 24
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OVERVIEW OF IC FUNCTION AND RELATIONSHIP TO 

LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT INDIVIDUALS

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) conducts and 

supports biomedical and behavioral research and research training in the normal and 

disordered processes of hearing, balance, taste, smell, voice, speech, and language. The 

Institute also conducts and supports research and research training related to disease 

prevention and health promotion; addresses special biomedical and behavioral problems 

associated with people who have communication challenges or disorders; and supports efforts 

to create devices that substitute for lost or impaired sensory and communication function.

The NIDCD serves as a resource for reliable and accurate research and health information on 

the normal processes and disorders of hearing, balance, taste, smell, voice, speech, and 

language. The NIDCD is congressionally mandated to facilitate and enhance knowledge and 

understanding of hearing and other communication processes and related disorders to health 

professionals, patients, industry, and health consumers and the public. The NIDCD fulfills this 

mandate by translating and disseminating science-based health information about these areas. 

Furthermore, the NIDCD strives to increase awareness of the importance of biomedical and 

behavioral research and to facilitate opportunities for research outcomes to prevent 

communication disorders and improve the lives of the millions of Americans who are affected 

by communication disorders.

More than 46 million people in the United States are estimated to have some form of 

communication disorder. These conditions include hearing loss; deafness; balance disorders; 

voice, speech, or language disorders; and impaired or lost sensory function such as taste and 

smell disorders. These conditions can significantly impact the emotional, social, educational, 

and cognitive development of the individual, and the cost of these disorders in terms of human 

suffering, unfulfilled potential, quality of life, and economic factors is incalculable. 

Furthermore, these conditions affect people of every socioeconomic group, ethnicity, and 

geographic location. Overall, there is little or no research evidence indicating that any specific 

demographic characteristic is at significantly greater or less risk for these conditions. In other

words, communications disorders that comprise the mission areas of the NIDCD can affect 

anyone. 

The NIDCD’s Office of Health Communication and Public Liaison operates an NIDCD 

Information Clearinghouse (Bethesda MD, 

http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/misc/pages/clearinghouse.aspx) to provide information 

and other resources on hearing, balance, taste, smell, voice, speech, and language. The primary 

functions of the clearinghouse are responding to written and telephone inquiries, and 

developing and maintaining consumer publications in English and in other languages 

(primarily Spanish). The clearinghouse also provides language interpretation and translation 
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services for limited English proficient individuals including health professionals, patients and 

other health consumers, industry, and others. 

In accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and in order to prevent 

discrimination on the basis of national origin against persons who are Limited English 

Proficiency, institutions receiving funding from NIH must take reasonable steps to help ensure 

that these individuals have meaningful access to all of their programs and activities. Although 

Title VI does not apply to federally conducted activities, Executive Order 13166 established a 

goal for all Federal agencies to "examine the services [they] provide and develop and 

implement a system by which LEP persons can meaningfully access those services consistent 

with, and without unduly burdening, the fundamental mission of the agency." This Language 

Access Plan (LAP) establishes the steps NIDCD will take to help ensure that LEP individuals 

have meaningful access to NIDCD programs and activities. 

In addition, the NIH recognizes the need to provide individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing 

with reasonable accommodations and access to sign language interpreters. In accordance to 

Title 45, Part 85 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, NIH ensures that American Sign Language 

interpreters are made available to NIH employees and visitors to the NIH who are deaf or hard 

of hearing. The NIDCD LAP focuses on initiatives related to individuals with limited English

proficiency; the institute and the NIH meets the needs of individuals who require sign 

language or assistive technology through other initiatives. 
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STAFFING REQUIREMENTS 

NIDCD Language Access Team

Name Title Description of Role related to 

LAP Implementation

Susan Dambrauskas Communications Director, 

Chief, Office of Health 

Communication and Public 

Liaison (OHCPL)

LAP Liaison; oversight of 

NIDCD communications 

planning, budgets, and 

functions

Melissa McGowan Deputy CD, Lead Public 

Affairs Specialist, OHCPL

LAP Team Member; Project 

officer (COR) on clearinghouse 

and web management 

contracts; team lead for public 

education campaign; oversight 

of consumer health information 

and fact sheets development 

and maintenance

Jean Tiong-Koehler, PhD Management Analyst/Ethics 

Specialist, OD

LAP Team Member; Research 

and input on needs and 

capacity analysis; general 

support.

Baldwin Wong Chief, Science Policy and 

Planning Branch

LAP Team Member; Oversight 

of NIDCD science policy 

activities; liaison with 

stakeholder organizations; 

responsible for NIDCD 

research strategic plan
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PLAN RESOURCES

The NIDCD will continue to make available resources to provide access to federally funded 

program materials for persons with limited English proficiency. Currently, these services are 

ongoing and provided for under existing contract vehicles within the Office of Health 

Communication and Public Liaison.
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PERFORMANCE MONITORING

1. The NIDCD will monitor the progress of this implementation plan through the following:

a. The LAP liaison or other assigned staff will review the status of implementation 

and assess whether plan revisions are needed annually during the 

implementation period (FY 2015 and 2016). 

b. The LAP liaison will submit an updated plan to the NIH LAP coordinators by 

September 30 for each year of plan implementation (FY 2015 and 2016).

c. The NIDCD LAP implementation team will consider recommendations from the 

NIH LAP coordinators to ensure that the institute’s efforts are adequate to meet 

NIH requirements. (ongoing)

2. The NIDCD will continue to collect process measures to evaluate trends in requests for 

non-English language materials or services and online access to materials in languages 

other than English. The measures are currently captured through the NIDCD Information 

Clearinghouse and the web management contracts. Some examples of these measures 

include:

a. The number of page views on Spanish-language web pages

b. The number of downloads for non-English publications

c. The number of orders placed for non-English publications

d. Reports from the NIDCD Information Clearinghouse for non-English information 

and publications requests received via phone calls, mail, and emails

e. Spanish language engagement on social media

3. The NIDCD LAP Team will consider the use of the Foresee survey to evaluate online user 

satisfaction for both the public site and the NIDCD Spanish web pages. 

The timeframes for items 2 and 3 above are addressed in Element 7, Assessment of Accessibility 

and Quality of Services. 
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ELEMENTS AND ACTION STEPS

The NIH Language Access Plan (LAP) is comprised of ten main elements. The NIH LAP 

identifies specific action steps that NIH ICs and OD subcomponents must take to implement 

the plan. These steps are critical to providing LEP individuals with meaningful access to NIH 

programs and activities. 

ELEMENT 1: Assessment of Needs and Capacity

ELEMENT 2: Oral Language Assistance Services

ELEMENT 3: Translation of Written Materials

ELEMENT 4: Policies and Procedures

ELEMENT 5: Notification of the Availability of Free Language Assistance

ELEMENT 6: Staff Training on the Provision of Language Assistance

ELEMENT 7: Assessment of the Accessibility and Quality of Services

ELEMENT 8: Stakeholder Consultation

ELEMENT 9: Digital Information

ELEMENT 10: Grant Assurance and Compliance
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ELEMENT 1: ASSESSMENT OF NEEDS AND CAPACITY

This overarching element encompasses what will be addressed throughout the assessment 

phase of the Plan. 

a. Each IC will designate a LAP Liaison responsible for implementation of the NIH’s 

Language Access Plan within the Liaison’s respective IC. 

The NIDCD has established an internal LAP team , which includes five individuals from the 

NIDCD Office of Administration (see Staffing Requirements section above). 

b. Liaisons will develop and implement a process to identify existing capacity to 

provide language assistance services, such as bilingual and multilingual staff 

qualified to serve as interpreters and the availability of contract interpreter and 

translation services.

The NIDCD currently provides translation services to limited English proficient 

individuals through the NIDCD Information Clearinghouse 

(http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/misc/pages/clearinghouse.aspx). Services include 

responding to written and telephone inquiries, and development and distribution of 

consumer publications in English and in other languages (Spanish). The clearinghouse 

staff provides call center specialists proficient in Spanish who can communicate verbally 

with members of the public as needed. Translation services to understand and respond to 

written public inquire are also provided. 

In addition, the NIDCD LAP Team surveyed NIDCD staff in August 2014 to identify staff 

who consider themselves proficient in one or more languages other than English and who 

might consider voluntarily serving as an interpreter or translator on behalf of the NIH for 

members of the public with LEP. Nine individuals responded; however, their qualifications 

to serve as interpreters and translators are unknown:

• Languages spoken: Arabic, Chinese (2), French (2), Greek, Gujarati, Portuguese, 

Russian, Spanish, and Tagalog. In addition, one individual is fluent in American Sign 

Language.

• Languages written: Arabic, Chinese (2), French (2), Greek, Portuguese, Russian, 

Spanish, and Tagalog. 

The qualifications of these staff to provide competent interpreter services have not been 

assessed, pending receipt of criteria from the NIH Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion 

(EDI), which serves as the coordinator of NIH language access implementation. Once the 

criteria and methods for assessing bilingual staff’s qualifications to provide interpreter 

services have been provided, the NIDCD LAP coordinator will work with EDI to determine 

which staff are qualified to provide language assistance services as appropriate.
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c. Liaisons will identify gaps where language assistance services are inadequate to 

meet the need, and identify and take specific steps to enhance language assistance 

services.

Below are gaps in language assistance services that the NIDCD has identified and 

proposed steps to enhance the services:

1. Oral language assistance. 

• No gaps have been identified. NIDCD will continue to review the 

interpretation services offered through the NIDCD information 

clearinghouse to ensure needs of LEP individuals are being met. The NIDCD 

LAP Team will determine which bilingual staff are qualified to provide 

interpreter services based on assessment tools provided by EDI when 

available. 

2. Translation of written materials.

• No gaps have been identified based on our recent needs assessment. Under 

the current process, the NIDCD Information Clearinghouse staff translate 

new and updated materials into Spanish once those materials are finalized 

in English.

• The NIDCD is exploring the possibility of translating some of the most 

requested information into other languages. (Note: Based on data from the 

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, the top five languages 

used by LEP individuals in the United States are Spanish, Chinese, Korean, 

Vietnamese, and Tagalog.)

3. Policies and procedures.

• In collaboration with EDI, the NIDCD LAP Team will tailor NIH language 

access policies and procedures as necessary.

4. Notification of availability of language assistance services.

• The NIDCD LAP Team will work with relevant staff and contractors to 

increase the visibility and awareness of currently available language 

assistance services. For example, implementation activities include 

promoting translated materials and language assistance services more 

prominently on the NIDCD website and making vital documents available in 

in other languages, as necessary. 
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5. Staff training on the provision of language assistance services.

• To increase staff awareness of available language assistance services for 

LEP individuals, NIDCD will post the finalized NIDCD LAP on the Intranet, 

work with the NIDCD Executive Officer to promote the plan to staff, and 

include information about the LAP and language assistance services in new 

employee training. 

6. Assessment of accessibility and quality of services.

• The NIDCD currently uses process measures and monitors customer 

comments to assess quality of services and accessibility. The NIDCD LAP 

Team will consider the use of the Foresee survey to evaluate online user 

satisfaction for both the public site and the NIDCD Spanish web pages. 

7. Stakeholder Consultation.

• The NIDCD will continue to monitor feedback provided to the NIDCD 

Information Clearinghouse. In addition, NIDCD will engage the National 

Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NDCD) Advisory Council on 

its LAP plan and subsequent implementation steps. 

8. Digital Information.

• The NIDCD plans to enhance its Spanish-language digital presence through 

continued social media engagement and the development of a Spanish 

microsite, which will include all available Spanish-language information. 

The microsite will also include general information about NIDCD, its 

mission, and how to participate in research studies. 

9. Grants assurance and compliance.

• EDI is working with the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) to create 

an NIH implementation plan to ensure that extramural grant recipients are 

aware of their obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and 

implementing regulations, as well as applicable grants policies related to 

language access and program accessibility. The NIDCD will follow the NIH 

policy.
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d. Liaisons will use data resources, such as U.S. Census data (e.g. the American 

Community Survey), when program-specific data are unavailable, to evaluate the 

extent of need for language assistance services, in particular languages at the 

national and regional level.

1. Currently available epidemiological data suggest no significant differences in 

prevalence of conditions in NIDCD mission areas based on race or ethnic groups. 

The NIDCD LAP Team consulted the director of the NIDCD Epidemiology and 

Statistics Program for insights on what, if any, disparities might exist among LEP 

individuals based on ethnicity. 

2. Data from the NIDCD information clearinghouse indicates that the top states for 

distribution of NIDCD publications were California, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and 

Arizona. NIDCD will use this data, combined with data on languages most 

commonly used by LEP individuals in those states and data on clearinghouse 

inquiries for information in other languages, to determine which additional 

languages, if any, NIDCD will focus on for future translations. 

e. Liaisons will develop or modify existing satisfaction and other surveys of LEP 

individuals utilizing NIH services, and other means of obtaining feedback on 

services delivered, to include collection of data, including at point of entry, on 

preferred language and English proficiency.

The NIDCD will explore customer satisfaction using the metrics noted in the Performance 

Monitoring section above. 
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ELEMENT 2: ORAL LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE SERVICES

NIH will provide oral language assistance services to help ensure meaningful access to LEP 

individuals, affording them an equal opportunity to participate in the services, activities, and 

programs administered by the NIH. 

Description of services currently provided:

The NIDCD uses several mechanisms by which oral language assistance services are provided 

to members of the public who are LEP:

1. The NIDCD Information Clearinghouse (Bethesda MD, 

http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/misc/pages/clearinghouse.aspx) has information 

specialists who can respond to telephone inquiries from LEP individuals who speak 

Spanish. 

2. The NIDCD intramural staff have access to interpreter services (phone: 301-496-2792 

or via CRIS System) available in the NIH Clinical Center for patient care when needed 

for LEP individuals (patients and guests) in the Clinical Center. The interpreter services 

cover about 90 languages and are provided to individuals either by direct personperson access or by phone. Individuals involved in providing these services are fulltime or part-time government employees, contractors and volunteers.

3. By request of the NIH LAP coordinator, the NIDCD surveyed staff in August 2014 to 

identify individuals who consider themselves proficient in one or more languages other 

than English and who might voluntarily serve as an interpreter on behalf of the NIH for 

members of the public with LEP, if qualified to do so. Based on the nine staff members 

who responded, language spoken by staff include Arabic, Chinese, French, Greek , 

Gujarati, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Tagalog.

Identified gaps:

The NIDCD has not identified gaps in oral language assistance services. 

The Information Clearinghouse receives only approximately 1. 5 percent of its inquiries in a 

language other than English, and non-English language requests are predominantly in Spanish. 

Between June 2013 and September 2014, the only non-English language requests were in 

Spanish (1.37%) and French (0.04%). Because the clearinghouse contract includes access to 

bilingual and Spanish-speaking information services and translation services, and the requests 

are predominately for English- and Spanish-language information, we believe that oral 

services provided through the clearinghouse are sufficient.
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The NIDCD will continue to monitor requests for information in other languages. Should more 

requests for other languages increase, additional language services through the NIDCD 

Information Clearinghouse contract may be necessary and may require a contract 

modification. Alternatively, if a centralized language assistance services contract is established 

at the NIH level, the NIDCD would use those services. The NIDCD is waiting for additional 

information from EDI on a centralized contract.

Assessment tools for determining level of competency for bilingual staff to serve as 

interpreters are needed. The NIDCD will look to EDI for guidance on the assessment process. 

Proposed implementation strategy, action steps and estimated timeframe:

1. The NIDCD will continue to ensure that Spanish-speaking information specialists are 

available for LEP individuals through the information clearinghouse and will continue 

to monitor requests for information in other languages. Timeframe: This is an ongoing 

effort. Requests and responses in non-English languages will be reported annually at 

the end of FY 2015 and 2016. 

2. The NIDCD LAP will continue to work with EDI to identify opportunities to use the 

centralized contract, if/when it is available. The NIDCD LAP Team will maintain a list of 

bilingual staff qualified to serve as interpreters after their competencies are assessed 

using tools provided by EDI when available. Timeframe: The NIDCD has completed a 

survey of bilingual staff. Assessment of their competencies to serve as interpreters will 

be completed after we receive new guidance from EDI. 

3. The NIDCD will review the implementation strategies for oral language assistance 

annually. Timeframe: Results will be reported at the end of FY 2015 and 2016. 
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ELEMENT 3: TRANSLATION OF WRITTEN MATERIALS

NIH will identify, translate, and make accessible in various formats (including print and

electronic media) vital documents in languages other than English, in accordance with 

assessments of needs and capacity conducted under Element 1.

Description of services currently provided:

The NIDCD offers science-based health education materials to the public as part of its mission 

to translate and disseminate research results. Fact sheets and other reference materials that 

target health consumers are currently translated in Spanish by a contractor. The documents 

are then reviewed by an OHCPL staff member who is a native Spanish speaker. 

Health education material is available in printed publications and through the website and 

other digital sources (e.g., social media). Most NIDCD factsheets are available in Spanish, and 

one in Vietnamese,. The factsheets typically focus on a single disease or disorder including 

signs or symptoms, diagnosis, available therapies or treatments, and current research in that 

area. Relevant screening programs (e.g., hearing screening of newborns) and prevention are 

also discussed. The information is available in HTML and PDF formats. Once a fact sheet is 

finalized in English, a Spanish translation is produced. Available Spanish language fact sheets 

are listed on the NIDCD website under a webpage called Información en español. 

Identified gaps:

The NIDCD has not identified a gap in this area based on a recent needs assessment. The 

NIDCD has not identified a linguistic minority with a higher prevalence of the conditions 

included in its research portfolio. We currently translate most of our materials into Spanish. 

The NIDCD information clearinghouse tracks all information requests, including inquiries for 

materials in different languages. From June 2013 to October 2014, the information 

clearinghouse received requests for materials in two languages other than English: Spanish 

(1.29%) and French (0.04%). 

The NIDCD is exploring the possibility of translating some of the most requested materials that 

have the greatest potential public health significance into the top languages of LEP individuals 

used in the United States (Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Tagalog based on U.S. Census 

data). 

Proposed implementation strategy, action steps and estimated timeframe:

1. The NIDCD will continue to procure translation services through its information 

clearinghouse contract and review and update Spanish-language materials as 

appropriate. Timeframe: This effort is ongoing; the NIDCD will continue to update 

translations of existing health information materials. Translations of new health 

information materials will be completed within 6 months of completion of English 

versions. 
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2. Data from the NIDCD Information Clearinghouse indicates that the top states for 

distribution of NIDCD publications were California, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and 

Arizona. NIDCD will use this data, combined with data on languages most commonly 

used by LEP individuals in those states, data on clearinghouse inquiries for information 

in other languages, stakeholder input, and evolving epidemiological data, to determine 

which languages NIDCD will focus on for future translations. Timeframe: The NIDCD 

will identify which materials will be translated into languages other than Spanish by 

September 30, 2015. Translations will be completed by the end of FY 2016. 

3. The NIDCD LAP Team will also work with other NIH ICs and the Information 

Clearinghouse to discuss strategies for enhancing information for LEP individuals. The 

NIDCD LAP Team reviewed the National Institute of Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases’ 

(NIAMS) distribution metrics for their Asian-language publications for additional 

guidance on materials translation. The NIDCD will continue to work with NIAMS and 

other ICs to identify which, if any, materials should be translated into other languages. 

4. The NIDCD will also seek opportunities to partner with other agencies (e.g., CDC) and 

stakeholders to provide health information materials in common interest areas, as 

appropriate. Timeframe: NIDCD will look for new opportunities to collaborate with 

other Federal agencies, based on need and priorities, in each year of implementation.
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ELEMENT 4: POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

NIH will develop, implement, and regularly update written policies and procedures that help

ensure individuals with LEP have meaningful access to agency programs and activities. 

Description of services currently provided:

NIDCD follows NIH policy on LAP requirements. 

In addition, NIDCD has the following procedures in place to meet the needs of LEP individuals:

• Translation (to Spanish) and review of consumer publications (e.g., fact sheets) 

following scientific review of English-language publications and digital content (e.g. web 

pages, social media messages);

• Oral language assistance for study volunteers in the intramural research program, such as 

the use of Interpreter Services in the Clinical Center;

• Oral language assistance and written translation to understand and respond to Spanishlanguage inquiries (phone, email, or other written)from consumers and other stakeholders 

who contact the NIDCD Information Clearinghouse.

• Translation of public inquiries in languages other than Spanish using Google translate to 

determine the nature of the inquiry and how to respond. 

Identified gaps:

1. Written policies and procedures describing available mechanisms and appropriate use of 

contractor services are needed at the NIH level. 

2. NIDCD has identified several bilingual staff members who are willing to serve as translators 

and interpreters. Standards for the use of interpretation services by bilingual NIDCD staff 

are needed.

Proposed implementation strategy, action steps and estimated timeframe:

1. In collaboration with EDI, the NIDCD LAP Team will tailor NIH language access policy 

and procedures as necessary. The policy and procedure will be cross-referenced with 

the NIDCD policy for responding to public and stakeholder inquiries, established in 

September 2014. Timeframe: The NIDCD public and stakeholder inquiries policy, 

including LAP policies and procedures, will be reviewed on an annual basis. The next 

review is due September 2015.

2. The policy and standards regarding interpretation services by bilingual NIDCD staff will 

be established based on criteria and assessment provided by EDI. Timeframe: To be 

determined, pending guidance from EDI. 
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ELEMENT 5: NOTIFICATION OF THE AVAILABILITY OF 

FREE LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE SERVICES

NIH, in accordance with agency needs and capacity and in plain language, will inform

individuals with LEP that language assistance is available at no cost to them.

Description of services currently provided:

The NIDCD offers free access to Spanish-language health information through its public 

website, science-based factsheets, and health education campaign. The availability of Spanishlanguage digital and print materials is noted on the NIDCD website homepage and in other 

pages. 

Spanish speakers can call the NIDCD Clearinghouse and talk to an information specialist in 

their native language. The availability of this service is promoted on the Spanish-language 

landing page for NIDCD’s factsheets.

Identified gaps:

1. Availability of language assistance services available to LEP visitors and consumers, 

including the availability of bilingual communication specialists in the NIDCD 

Information Clearinghouse to help members of the public access relevant health 

information in languages other than Spanish, is not well promoted on the NIDCD 

website and relevant materials.

2. Information about NIH Language Interpreter Services available in the NIH Clinical 

Center for study volunteers, family members, and healthcare providers is not 

prominent. 

3. Vital documents, such as the NIDCD’s photo/video release form, are currently available 

in English only. 

Proposed implementation strategy, action steps, and estimated timeframe:

Availability of oral language assistance services offered by the NIDCD, in compliance with NIH 

policies, will be made more visible and accessible to the public.

1. Information about free access to language assistance services on the NIDCD and 

campaign websites will be enhanced. The NIDCD website will be restructured to better 

highlight language assistance services available to LEP visitors, and how to access these 

services.

a. Post the NIDCD language access plan and related information, as identified in the 

gaps above, on the website. Timeframe: The NIDCD LAP will be posted on our 

website by September 30, 2015.
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b. Revise the NIDCD and education campaign websites to highlight the availability 

of Spanish resources based on best practices. For example, on the main page of 

the NIDCD public website, display information prominently and in a location 

typical of other websites to highlight the availability of free health information 

and specialists in Spanish and other languages as appropriate. Timeframe: This 

action step will be taken when the NIDCD website is migrated to a new web 

content management system, expected to be completed in September 2015.

c. Indicate on the website publications order form that requests can be made in 

Spanish or other languages. Timeframe: This will be completed by the end of 

March 2015.

d. Revise the language on the NIDCD Information Clearinghouse (Contact Us) page 

of the NIDCD website to specify the availability of Spanish-language information 

and the availability of bilingual communication specialists to help LEP 

customers find relevant materials. Timeframe: This will be completed by the end 

of March 2015.

2. Post information about NIH Language Interpreter Services to inform clinical research 

volunteers, family members, and healthcare providers of the availability of such 

services within NIDCD’s clinical offices and laboratories on relevant NIDCD web pages.

Timeframe: This will be completed by the end of March 2015. 

3. Identify and translate vital documents into Spanish, and other languages, as necessary. 

Timeframe: This process will take place on an ongoing basis, as needs for these 

documents arise.
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ELEMENT 6: STAFF TRAINING ON THE PROVISION OF 

LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE SERVICES

NIH will provide employees with training, as necessary, to help ensure that appropriate staff 

understand and can implement the policies and procedures of the NIH Language Access Plan 

and each IC Implementation Plan. 

Description of services currently provided:

General training for Spanish information specialists will continue as part of the information 

clearinghouse contract. 

Identified gaps:

The NIDCD does not specifically train staff on how to provide language assistance services to 

individuals with LEP. 

Proposed strategy, action steps and estimated timeframe:

To increase NIDCD staff awareness of available language assistance services, the NIDCD will 

take the following steps:

1. NIDCD will make the NIDCD LAP policy and related information available on the Intranet. 

Timeframe: The NIDCD will make the LAP available to all staff under the Policies, 

Standards, and Procedures web page on the Intranet no later than September 30, 2015.

2. The NIDCD Executive Officer will email all staff to explain the LAP and how to provide 

guidance to LEP individuals requesting access the available health information resources. 

Timeframe: Once the LAP is available on the Intranet, this email will be sent out. 

3. Information about the NIDCD LAP and resources available to help LEP individuals access 

information will be incorporated into training for new NIDCD employees. Timeframe: The 

NIDCD LAP team will work with the Administrative Management Branch to include 

information on the LAP and on providing access to information for members of the public 

with LEP in any new or updated materials or policies for new staff. 
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ELEMENT 7: ASSESSMENT OF ACCESSIBILITY 

AND QUALITY OF SERVICES

NIH will regularly assess the accessibility and quality of language assistance services for 

individuals with LEP. 

Description of services currently provided:

The NIDCD has consumer educational materials available in Spanish on its websites, 

which provides information on NIDCD research and treatment for communication 

disorders. Visitors with questions about this website can contact NIDCD, or a NIDCD 

public affairs specialist that is proficient in Spanish responds to the visitor’s comments. 

The NIDCD will continue to monitor and update English health education materials on a 

regular basis. Materials are tailored to be culturally and linguistically appropriate for nonEnglish publications and are occasionally tested with the target audience. Materials may also 

be back-translated to ensure scientific content. For Spanish publications we use bilingual 

contract staff for translation, and, in most cases, have an NIDCD bilingual staff person review 

the translation to complete quality control. 

The NIDCD has ongoing processes to assess the quality and accessibility of language services as 

noted in the Performance Monitoring section of this report. 

Identified gaps:

NIDCD uses process measures to measure the accessibility and quality of language 

assistance services for individuals with LEP. NIDCD will explore additional methods to 

measure customer satisfaction and survey LEP individuals to obtain feedback. 

Proposed implementation strategy, action steps and estimated timeframe:

1. Continue the use of process measures and monitor customer comments regarding 

language assistance services as noted in the Performance Monitoring section of 

this report. Timeframe: Starting in January 2015, the NIDCD will review quarterly 

the number of Spanish-language web pages viewed and non-English publications 

downloaded; also, how many calls come in and social media engagement in other 

languages. 

2. The NIDCD LAP Team will consider the use of the Foresee survey to evaluate online 

user satisfaction for both the public site and the NIDCD Spanish web pages. Timeframe: 

By FY 2016—the second year of full implementation—the NIDCD will work with EDI 

and other ICs to determine feasibility of using Foresee to evaluate user satisfaction of 

Spanish-language web pages. 
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3. Collecting feedback from NDCD Advisory Council members. Timeframe: Input will 

be sought in conjunction with the May 2015 meeting (tentative). See also Element 8, 

Stakeholder Consultation. 
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ELEMENT 8: STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION

NIH will consult external stakeholder communities to identify language assistance needs of

individuals with LEP.

Description of services currently provided:

The NIDCD offers ways for public stakeholders to contact the institute through telephone calls 

or emails. These contacts are made through the NIDCD website or the NIDCD Information 

Clearinghouse. 

Identified gaps:

The NIDCD continues to explore ways to seek public input, which includes obtaining insight 

from external stakeholders about the provision of language assistance services to LEP 

individuals. 

Proposed implementation strategy, action steps, and estimated timeframe:

1. Continue to respond to and track public comments to NIDCD through phone calls, 

emails, and inquires to the NIDCD Information Clearinghouse. Timeframe: This is an 

ongoing effort. 

2. Share the draft NIDCD LAP with the NDCD Advisory Council and incorporate 

suggestions based on members’ feedback. Timeframe: The NIDCD LAP team will share 

the draft LAP plan in conjunction with the May 2015 meeting (tentative) and 

incorporate, as appropriate, changes by September 30, 2015.
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ELEMENT 9: DIGITAL INFORMATION

NIH will develop and implement strategies to help ensure that digital information is accessible to 

LEP individuals. 

Description of services currently provided:

As previously noted in Element 3: Translation of Written Materials, NIDCD provides health 

information in English and Spanish through its website and through various social media 

platforms.

Identified gaps:

Currently, NIDCD has one webpage that lists all available Spanish-language health 

information for the general public. Based on best practices, the NIDCD website should have a 

Spanish microsite that would include health information as well as background information 

about NIDCD, including a description of the Institute’s mission, its organization, news and 

events, how to participate in research studies, statistics, and how to contact us.

Proposed implementation strategy, action steps, and timeframe:

1. As noted in Element 3, NIDCD will follow the same implementation strategy and 

timeline for digital information. Timeframe: This is an ongoing effort. See the 

timeframe described in Element 3.

2. For the Spanish microsite, the NIDCD will work with our contractors to look at 

currently available Spanish information and implement a plan to translate 

additional information addressed above. Implementation of the plan will be 

dependent on resources available and competing priorities. Timeframe: The NIDCD 

will draft a strategy for a Spanish-language microsite by December 31, 2014. The 

strategy will be implemented in conjunction with the NIDCD website migration to a 

new web content management system, expected to be completed by September 2015. 
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ELEMENT 10: GRANTS ASSURANCE AND COMPLIANCE

NIH will help ensure that extramural grant recipients are aware of their obligations under Title 

VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and implementing regulations, as well as applicable grants 

policies related to language access and program accessibility.

Description of services currently provided:

An authorized official of an applicant institution seeking NIH grants must sign an HHS 690 

Assurance of Compliance form (http://www.hhs.gov/forms/HHS690.pdf) with the HHS Office 

for Civil Rights, assuring that they will comply with federal civil rights laws including Title VI; 

however, Program Directors and/or Principal Investigators and their staffs may not be aware 

of, or fully understand their obligations. 

Identified gaps:

The Office of Equity Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is working with the Office of Extramural 

Research (OER) to create an implementation Plan for Element 10.

Proposed strategy:

1. EDI is working with OER to ensure that NIH grantees are aware of their obligations 

under Title VI of the Civil Rights Acts which prohibits discrimination on the basis of 

language ability.

2. The NIDCD will follow NIH policy and guidance. Timeframe: This is an ongoing effort.
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APPENDIX A: APPROVAL

APPENDIX A: NIDCD Language Access Implementation Plan 2014 Approval

The undersigned acknowledges that he/she has reviewed the Language Access 

Implementation Plan presented within this document. Changes to this NIDCD Language 

Access Implementation Plan 2014 will be coordinated with, and approved by, the Chair of 

the IC Liaison Committee, or their designated representatives.

Signature: [Original draft signed 10/7/14] Date: 11/24/14

Print Name: Timothy J. Wheeles

Title: Executive Officer