Whenever a big conference is about to happen in the language services profession, I always get a flood of messages asking me if I’ll be there. While I’m grateful to have so many people in my life who are looking forward to seeing me (and I’m looking forward to seeing too), when I say I’m not able to come, the line of questioning often leads to a discussion about my health...
I did some statistical voodoo on a bunch of articles with strategies for dealing with loneliness as a freelancer and/or someone working remotely. Then, I geared those tips towards interpreters and translators.
Over the past few years there's been a noticeable shift in the discourse in online communities for interpreters. Labor issues have become increasingly commonplace, and we just don't talk about our mental health.
Only July 25, 2022, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced proposed changes to Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). I’ve been relentlessly stalking the Regulations.gov website at all hours of the day and night waiting for the comment period to open up, and some time between last night and this morning it was posted! What is Section 1557 of the ACA? It’s...
If you are an interpreter providing medical interpretation services via phone (OPI) as a contractor for U.S. healthcare clients and the interpreting agency or company you are interpreting for says you have to have your own phone line to take calls, you may need to have an agreement in place to protect you from legal liability called a Business Associate Agreement or BAA. Specifically, if you are...
I never would have imagined when I started my career as a medical interpreter that I would be writing an article with a title like this, but here I am. It wasn’t too long after I began my career that I became acutely aware of scams in the translation world, such as the classic, “Oops, we overpaid you!” bait and switch. But truthfully, in the beginning I didn’t believe...
As some of you may know, I’m an active member of many Facebook groups for interpreters and translators. I recently posted about how I meet my agencies’ requirement as a freelance medical interpreter for having my vaccine record on my person at all times during assignments in healthcare facilities. My state of Virginia now has an option to generate a QR code for your COVID-19...
One thing I always try to impart to my medical interpreting students is: as medical interpreters, it is important for us not only to interpret what is said, but also how it is said. Tone and inflection can completely change the meaning of an utterance, so interpreting tone incorrectly can negatively impact communication in an interpreted encounter. This is why I created this short video for...
I had both the pleasure and privilege to facilitate a session of the Language Access Café at the 2021 Annual Membership Meeting of the National Council on Interpreting in Healthcare. This year’s theme was Trauma, Language, and Social Justice, and I was asked if I could lead a discussion on interpreting for the LGBTQ community. It felt so appropriate and timely to center this discussion...
I've learned a lot about PPE over this past year as an on-site medical interpreter in terms of efficacy, comfort, and fit, among other things. I share my PPE tips, what works, what doesn't, and why.
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I am a Certified Medical/Healthcare Interpreter (CMI-Spanish, CHI-Spanish) and a medical interpreter trainer. I work as an independent contractor in the greater Richmond, Virginia area as a Spanish-English medical interpreter. Click here to read more about me.
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