An excellent resource on choosing and evaluating a language agency is How to Choose and Use a Language Agency from The California Endowment. Much of the following information derives from that document. There are a number of considerations regarding quality of interpreting when considering a language agency: How does the agency recruit interpreters/translators? An agency [...]
Qualified interpreters often belong to professional associations or work through language service agencies. For a list of translator and interpreter associations, see NCIHC’s resources page at www.ncihc.org. For language service providers and additional information, see NHelP’s Language Services Resource Guide (2006).
Yes. The following are key laws and policy guidance concerning provision of services to people with limited English proficiency (LEP): Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 HHS Policy Guidance on the Prohibition Against National Origin Discrimination as it Affects Persons With Limited English Proficiency DOJ Guidance to Federal Financial Assistance Recipients Regarding [...]
Patients themselves are under no obligation to pay for these services. Thirteen states currently provide reimbursement for language services provided to Medicaid enrollees. For more information, see the National Health Law Program’s publication, Medicaid/SCHIP Reimbursement Models for Language Services: 2007 Update. Some health care providers pay for interpreter services themselves. For more information, see the [...]
A certified interpreter is an interpreter who is certified as competent by a professional organization or government entity through rigorous testing based on appropriate and consistent criteria. Interpreters who have had limited training or have taken a screening test administered by an employing health, interpreter or referral agency are not considered certified. A qualified interpreter [...]
Many hospitals and health care organizations have an Interpreter Services Manager who is responsible for seeing that qualified interpreters are being provided by their organization. If there is a complication, the Compliance Office should be contacted.
The US Department of Health and Human Services Guidance to Federal Financial Assistance Recipients Regarding Title VI Prohibition Against National Origin Discrimination Affecting Limited English Proficient Persons describes various options available for providing oral language assistance including the use of bilingual staff, staff interpreters, or contract interpreters…The guidance stresses that interpreters need to be trained [...]
The following six components together comprise a reasonably comprehensive process for initial assessment of qualifications for health care interpreting. Basic language skills. General proficiency in speaking and understanding each of the languages in which the applicant would be expected to work. (If multiple languages are involved, it is essential that the applicant’s ability in each [...]
A bilingual individual is a person who has some degree of proficiency in two languages. A high level of bilingualism is the most basic of the qualifications of a competent interpreter, but by itself does not insure the ability to interpret. A bilingual employee may provide direct services in both languages but, without additional training, [...]
An individual, who has been assessed for professional skills, demonstrates a high level of proficiency in at least two languages and has the appropriate training and experience to interpret with skill and accuracy while adhering to the National Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice published by the National Council on Interpreting in Health Care.
