# Opalite Medical Translator

> Translate clinical text between clinician jargon and patient-friendly language (or across spoken languages), preserving every dosage and numeric value verbatim, expanding all abbreviations correctly, and flagging anything that needs human verification.

- Skill: `riteshkew/opalite-medical-translator` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 5 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add riteshkew/opalite-medical-translator`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/riteshkew/opalite-medical-translator/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: riteshkew (https://skillmd.com/u/riteshkew)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/riteshkew/opalite-medical-translator

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# Workflow

When this skill triggers, follow these steps in order.

## Step 1 — Ingest Clinical Text and Target Audience

Ask the user for (or read from the prompt):

1. **Clinical text** — the source document: discharge summary, after-visit note, lab result, prescription instructions, or any clinical snippet.
2. **Target audience** — one of:
   - `patient-friendly` (plain English, reading level ~6th grade)
   - `caregiver` (slightly more technical, but still jargon-free)
   - `spanish-patient` (patient-friendly, translated into Spanish)
   - `clinician` (reverse direction — patient description back into clinical shorthand)
3. **Language override** (optional) — any ISO language name, e.g. "Mandarin", "Portuguese". Overrides the audience language if set.

If the clinical text or target audience is missing, prompt:
> "Please provide: (1) the clinical text you want translated, and (2) the target audience (patient-friendly, caregiver, spanish-patient, or clinician)."

## Step 2 — Extract and Inventory Critical Values

Before writing a single word of translation, internally build an inventory:

- **Dosages and concentrations**: e.g. `500mg`, `0.9% NaCl`, `10 units`
- **Frequencies**: e.g. `TID`, `BID`, `q8h`, `PRN`
- **Durations and intervals**: e.g. `x7d`, `x14 days`, `2 wks`
- **Thresholds and reference values**: e.g. `>38.5°C`, `<90 mmHg`, `HbA1c >7%`
- **Numeric lab values**: e.g. `WBC 12.4`, `Cr 1.1 mg/dL`, `INR 2.3`
- **Procedure and anatomy abbreviations**: e.g. `s/p lap chole`, `RUQ`, `PCP`, `D/C`

Record every item. These are the **verbatim preservation list** — none may be paraphrased or altered in the output.

## Step 3 — Translate to the Target Register

Produce the translated document following these rules:

### For patient-friendly / caregiver / language targets:

- Expand every abbreviation on first use, e.g. `TID (three times a day)`.
- Write dosages and frequencies as: `amoxicillin 500 mg (500mg), taken three times a day (TID)` — preserve the original value in parentheses if space allows, or inline directly.
- Never substitute a numeric value: `500mg` stays `500mg`, never "half a gram". `38.5°C` stays `38.5°C`, not "slightly above normal".
- Use short sentences (≤20 words each).
- Avoid Latin phrases; use plain equivalents (`by mouth` not `per os`).
- Organise the output with clear section headers: **What happened**, **Your medications**, **Follow-up appointments**, **Warning signs — return to the ER if you notice any of these**.
- Keep the **Warning signs** section visually prominent (bold header).

### For clinician (reverse) direction:

- Convert plain-language descriptions back to standard clinical shorthand.
- Preserve all numeric values exactly as the patient stated them.
- Flag any values that appear clinically implausible with `[VERIFY]`.

## Step 4 — Flag Ambiguities and Add the Verification Notice

After the translated document, always append two sections:

### Things to verify with your provider

List every term or instruction from the source that is:
- Ambiguous or context-dependent (e.g. a PRN medication with no stated threshold)
- An abbreviation that could have multiple expansions (e.g. `MS` = multiple sclerosis OR morphine sulfate)
- A value outside typical patient reference ranges that warrants explanation
- Any instruction requiring professional clinical judgement

Format as a numbered list. If nothing is ambiguous, write: "No ambiguous terms identified — still confirm all instructions with your provider before acting."

### Verification notice

Always end with this exact block, adapted for the target language if translating:

> **Important:** This translation is a communication aid only. It is not medical advice. Always confirm your medications, doses, and follow-up instructions directly with your healthcare provider or pharmacist before making any changes to your care.

## Step 5 — Quality Check

Before returning output, verify the inventory from Step 2:

- [ ] Every dosage value from the source appears verbatim in the output (500mg not "500 milligrams" unless the original said that).
- [ ] Every frequency abbreviation is expanded AND the original abbreviation is preserved in parentheses on first use.
- [ ] Every duration and threshold appears unchanged.
- [ ] The **Things to verify with your provider** list is present.
- [ ] The **Important** verification notice is present.
- [ ] The `## Rubric` section is appended.

If any check fails, revise before returning.

## Example

See `examples/input.md` for a realistic discharge-summary snippet with multiple dosages, numeric thresholds, and clinical abbreviations. See `examples/output.md` for the complete patient-friendly rewrite, verification list, and rubric.