Story by Megan McIntyre
Photo by Tom Jorgensen
From fyi, The University of Iowa Faculty and Staff News
Since its inception in 1975, the Interpreting and Translation Services at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics has helped more than 200,000 people—patients, their relatives, and visitors—in approximately 50 oral and signed languages.
That's pretty impressive, in any language.
"It seems like the phone never stops ringing," says Mary Solis, senior interpreter for the program.
The service—the oldest program of its kind in the United States—provides services for each area of the medical center, including scheduling, registration, the business office, admissions, outpatient clinics, inpatient areas, procedure suites, surgery, and recovery rooms.
"The easiest way to describe what we do is to say that we facilitate communication wherever and whenever communication is taking place," says Ozzie Díaz-Duque, coordinator for the Interpreting and Translation Services and lecturer of Spanish and Portuguese in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Díaz-Duque says the program serves a population of monolingual speakers of many languages as well as deaf persons who use American Sign Language or Signed English.
Solis, who will mark her 26th year of working for UI Hospitals and Clinics this May, is the lone full-time staff member; she coordinates patients with interpreters and translators from the Language Bank, which has more than 135 freelance and volunteer workers providing interpretation services in more than 40 languages.
Gather the Basics
"I gather the basic information: patient's name, time they will need the service, and where they will be," she says. "Then I find them an interpreter."
On any given day, up to 10 interpreters may be on site. Zadok Nampala is a Language Bank interpreter who is fluent in Swahili, Kikuyu, Lou, and Turkana. Nampala focuses most of his attention on translation, and the majority of his translation is from Swahili.
"I think it is a good way to help out—and there are a lot of people who need help," he says.
The service, started with two interpreters and translators (Díaz-Duque being one of them), also provides resources, information, and training for UI Hospitals and Clinics staff as well as agencies around Iowa and the United States.
Being an interpreter or a translator begins with native or near-native command of two or more languages. All Language Bank interpreters are screened, receive evaluations, and in some cases must hold a state license. There are various types of interpreter including: legal, judicial, diplomatic, civil service and international business.
The interpreters and translators are challenged on many levels: linguistically, culturally, technically, ethically, and emotionally. Even the most experienced interpreter faces challenges, given the difficulty of continually switching from one language to another for long periods of time.
Optimal Level
"Whether it's simultaneous or consecutive interpreting, particularly in a medical setting, one cannot afford to perform at less than optimal level," Díaz-Duque says. "Few people excel in the professions of interpreting and translation."
The difficult side of health care also weighs on interpreters and translators. "We deal with seriously ill persons, and often death," Diaz-Duque says. "Working with children who are ill, seriously or not, is particularly challenging for me."
In spite of these challenges, the job provides many wonderful moments. Díaz-Duque enjoys interpreting for patients and families who are welcoming a new family member. Díaz-Duque has interpreted during nearly 600 deliveries, using Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and American Sign Language.
"I have worked at UI Hospitals and Clinics for 33 years, and without a doubt, the birth of a child continues to be at the top of the list," he says.
He and others on the Interpreting and Translation Services staff find a great sense of honor in the work they perform.
"Being able to break the language barrier, being a small part of all the myriad things that occur in a medical center, that is most rewarding," Díaz-Duque says. |
