Overview
Healthcare interpreters facilitate communication between patients with limited English proficiency (LEP) and their physicians, nurses, lab technicians, and other healthcare providers. Because of the growing number of LEP patients, the need for healthcare interpreters has grown swiftly in the last decade, so there is good career potential in this profession.
When a patient has limited second language skills, it is nearly impossible for even the most skilled clinician to provide high-quality healthcare services without accurate interpreting performed by a trained, qualified interpreter who is familiar with medical terminology. If family members, friends or staff who are not trained as healthcare interpreters try to interpret in healthcare settings, errors in understanding and/or communication can occur, posing grave risks to the patient and immense liability to the healthcare institution.
The responsibilities of most full-time healthcare interpreters center on face-to-face interpreting between patients and providers. However, interpreters may also be asked to work with other individuals, such as family members or a patient representative, and they may provide cultural information to facilitate support for a treatment plan. Healthcare interpreters often render sight translation (oral translation) of healthcare documents by giving an oral translation into the language of the patient.
Since the profession of healthcare interpreting is little understood, healthcare interpreters often find themselves having to educate other members of the healthcare team across the disciplines regarding the duties, requirements, and ethical standards involved in healthcare interpreting.
Throughout the U.S., interpreters are becoming a key and highly valued member of the healthcare team. Their responsibilities have evolved greatly in the last decade, and this trend is continuing.
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Healthcare Interpreter 14 May 2008 [pdf, 192 KB]