每日英語 #013: Waiting at the Pharmacy

更新於 2024/05/30發佈於 2024/05/30閱讀時間約 7 分鐘

Waiting at the Pharmacy

At the pharmacy, about a meter and a half from the counter where you pick up your "prescriptions" (drugs the doctor gives you), you may see a small sign or "mat" (something you stand on that protects the floor or surface under it) that reads:

在藥房，距離你取藥的櫃檯大約一米半的地方，你可能會看到一個小標誌或地墊，上面寫著：

Please Wait Here / You’re NEXT / Respect Patient Privacy

請等候 / 輪到你了 / 尊重病人隱私

"Please wait here" is clear enough. It means "Don't go any farther! Stop here!" "You're next" is telling you that you will be the next person who is helped at the counter. "Respect Patient Privacy" is a little more "involved" (complicated).

「請等候」很清楚了。它的意思是「不要再往前走！就在這停下！」「輪到你了」告訴你你將是櫃檯上下一個被幫助的人。而「尊重病人隱私」則稍微複雜一些。

"To respect" means, in this case, to observe, to be careful of, or to look out for. "Patients" are people who are sick and need to see a doctor. "Privacy" comes from private, meaning to keep things secret from other people, not to let other people know your personal information. The reason the sign says "Respect Patient Privacy" is that the hospital doesn't want us to stand too close to the patient at the counter. If we do, we could hear their private medical information, which is none of our concern.

「尊重」在這個情況下的意思是觀察、小心、或留意。「病人」是指生病需要看醫生的人。「隱私」來自於「私人」，意思是將事情保密不讓其他人知道，不讓其他人了解你的個人信息。標誌上寫「尊重病人隱私」的原因是醫院不希望我們站得太靠近櫃檯上的病人。如果我們這樣做，我們可能會聽到他們的私人醫療信息，這與我們無關。

There is a reason why hospitals and pharmacies have these signs now. In the early 2000’s, the U.S. government passed a set of laws to protect people’s personal medical information so that it would not be given to others without their permission. The law is called HIPAA, which stands for Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. It was meant in part to protect people’s privacy when it comes to medical information. If you look closely at those pharmacy signs or mats, you may see the words “HIPAA Compliant,” meaning that this sign or mat meets the requirements of the HIPAA law. "To be compliant" means that you or your organization is doing the things necessary to obey a certain law.

現在醫院和藥房有這些標誌的原因是有道理的。在21世紀初，美國政府通過了一系列法律來保護人們的個人醫療信息，以便在沒有他們的許可下不會提供給他人。這項法律叫做HIPAA，即健康保險流動性和責任法。它在一定程度上旨在保護人們在醫療信息方面的隱私。如果你仔細看這些藥房的標誌或地墊，你可能會看到「HIPAA合規」這幾個字，意思是這個標誌或地墊符合HIPAA法律的要求。"To be compliant" 的意思是你或你的組織正在做符合某項法律所需的事情。