Question

A Business Process Outsourcing centre, ‘Chromosome’ which deals in conversion of voice reports dictated by physicians and other healthcare providers into text format has 40 employees. They ensure that their employees are well versed in at least one foreign language and one Indian language. The employees are also given the required training to ensure that the reports are processed correctly as they are the backbone of the patients’ medical history. On frequent complaints about some of its employees, it was observed that they were facing problems in decoding the message as they were not very proficient with the language in which the voice message was received. As a result, they would make mistakes causing different meaning to the message. Not only this, sometimes there were technical words used in voice reports, the actual meaning of which was also not understood by the employees. Due to this, ‘Chromosome’ was slowly losing its business to competitors. The above case highlights two communication barriers. Identify and explain these barriers.

Hint:

When misinterpretation of words or language proficiency causes communication breakdown, look for Semantic and Linguistic Barriers.

Answer 1

The case highlights two important communication barriers in the organization ‘Chromosome’: 1. Semantic Barrier:
Semantic barriers arise due to problems in interpreting the meaning of words and symbols used in communication. In this case, the employees were unable to understand the technical words used in the voice reports. These technical jargons, without proper comprehension, lead to incorrect transcription and altered meaning. Medical terms are often complex and must be precisely understood to avoid serious misinterpretation. Example: If an employee mishears or misunderstands a term like "angioplasty" and types it as "angiography," the entire meaning of the medical record changes. 2. Linguistic Barrier:
Linguistic barriers refer to difficulties that arise when the sender and the receiver are not proficient in the same language. Here, some employees were not fluent in the language in which the voice messages were recorded. This lack of language proficiency caused problems in decoding and correctly transcribing the messages. Example: An employee unfamiliar with French medical dictation may struggle with pronunciation, leading to incorrect transcriptions. These barriers resulted in frequent errors, misinterpretations, and ultimately affected the company’s credibility, leading to business loss. Final Answer:
- Semantic Barrier
- Linguistic Barrier