Sambo Ly, Alameda Health System’s (AHS’) manager of interpreter services, has won the Icon Award from CBS News Bay Area (KPIX) in recognition of her decades of service to refugees and community members in Alameda County.
The Icon Award highlights people who have made a significant and impactful contribution to their community. KPIX reporter Sharon Chin spoke with Ly about her childhood in Cambodia, how she survived the Khmer Rouge genocide, and her current work serving safety-net patients at Alameda Health System. Watch the story here.
Ly leads AHS’ interpreter services department, which receives about 2,000 interpreter requests every day, in 100 different languages, from AHS patients who need help communicating with their health care providers. Alameda County is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse counties in the United States, and many AHS patients arrive with limited ability to communicate in English.
AHS’ department of interpreter services provides in-house interpretation in 10 languages, either in person or remotely, and offers access to on-demand, remote interpreters of up to 300 languages. The department continues to innovate, recently introducing iPads that allow patients to have clearer conversations with their providers.