Posted on: April 1, 2020 by admin
The novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak which has originated at the Wuhan province in China in late 2019 has now become a global pandemic that has affected almost all countries across the globe, with the number of cases skyrocketing in the USA, China, parts of Europe and many other regions. Australia has thousands of cases, which has pushed the Government to introduce strict lockdowns due to the fears that number of cases could spike suddenly if businesses continue to open their doors to employees and customers, since the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a global health emergency over the outbreak of the virus.
Until the world finds a vaccine to prevent the disease or a medication to cure it, many businesses are now operating remotely and meetings are conducted online, with different language speakers using phone interpreting services and video remote interpreting to break barriers and help businesses continue to run without putting lives at risk to those in quarantine.
But what about those who live in our multi-cultural community and need to seek help but are not proficient in English or cannot easily communicate their symptoms due to language restrictions? If they suffer the symptoms of the Coronavirus, including fever, cough, and breathing difficulties, they might not be good at communicating these to a doctor or health practitioner. Perhaps, they wouldn’t be able to speak enough English to seek help at the right facility.
And this is where medical translators and interpreters come in.
MEDICAL TRANSLATORS VA MEDICAL INTERPRETERS
MEDICAL TRANSLATORS
Medical translators are experienced linguistics who are NAATI certified translators with a strong background in the medical field. NAATI certified medical translators don’t just go through extensive and in-depth training programs to qualify them becoming expert medical translators, but they also understand industry-specific terminologies, proper procedures, sensitivity, privacy and code of ethics to follow when offering medical translation services.
This includes also professional translation and understanding of medical history, lab tests, referral letters, medical reports and many other medical documents which requiring hiring a medical translator.
MEDICAL INTERPRETERS
Medical interpreters work the same way as medical interpreters, except that they don’t convert written documents, but instead convert spoken dialogue from one language into another language to facilitate communication between two parties that do not speak the same language. These services are offered in real-time to facilitate communication without breaking its flow. The service, however, doesn’t have to be just offered in-person, especially during the current situation which puts everyone at risk and could be part of spreading the infection. Translation and interpreting companies offer medical interpreting services either in-person, through phone interpreting (offered referred to as phone translation), or through video conferencing where required.
Medical interpreters, like medical translators, have in-depth experience and knowledge of the medical jargon.
If you are a doctor who needs to communicate with a patient that does not speak English or are at a medical facility who requires ongoing assistance and support of a medical interpreter, speak to the team at Speak Your Language today. We also offer Auslan interpreting services to those who need it.
We are happy to facilitate communication between different organizations and individuals and support our community during these difficult times.
