I am interested in a Deaf persons views and experience with medical interpreting. Here are some questions I am and please add anything else. Thank you
1) what was the setting. Heat problem, dental, physical check up, emergency room
2) what was the nurses/ doctors reaction to the interpreter?
3) who made the introduction in this appointment
4) how did you the patient feel about the interpreter
5) have you ever went to a doctors appointment without an interpreter? How was it?
6) do you prefer to have an interpreter if yes why?
7) how long do you have to wait for an interpreter to arrive to an appointment?
8) where instructions about you medications clear from the interpreter?
Thank you
As a former medical professional, I have to say that I agree with what everyone else said: Your incredibly poorly written English and obvious inability to handle even the slightest amount of
constructive criticism is alarming and very unprofessional. I would be incredibly concerned if the interpreter my client brought with him to the clinic couldn't spell even basic English. Why??? For starters, the spelling of medical terminology is very complex. Many people for whom English is their first language have difficulty spelling and pronouncing some of the more complex medical terms. As a
medical interpreter, I would EXPECT you to at least know how to spell those terms, and if you were unclear, I would similarly EXPECT you to ask for help in spelling them. For both ethical and legal purposes, spelling IS a big deal in the medical world. Ask anyone who has ever confused "Lasix" (a diuretic medication) with "Lasik" (corrective eye surgery). And yes, apparently that exact confusion has really happened, at least in a written medical report!
Second, as a few people have mentioned, your inability to write in English already leads me to question whether or not you could effectively communicate my spoken directions, recommendations for follow up, etc., to another person (my patient) via sign language. If you don't understand basic grammatical rules in English, how can I, as a medical professional, expect you to translate my ideas appropriately?
Third, everyone - EVERYONE - needs to be able to take constructive criticism. It's part of being a professional. Medical professionals get called to task All. The. Time. The others are right. If you can't handle the comments on this forum, I'm not convinced you can handle interpreting in real life. People everywhere can be mean, sarcastic, petty, intimidating, etc. I've taken loads of constructive, and not-so-constructive criticism over the years. Sometimes it was uncalled for, but more often than not, it was completely appropriate. Criticism is part of the job for a professional. In fact, I'd even say it's part of ANY job, or just a part of life.
Fourth: I had one Deaf patient who brought different interpreters with him whenever he came to the clinic to see me. Here's the thing. I can sign. Years ago, I was fluent in conversational ASL, but I didn't use it much so I lost most of my ability to communicate well. I can still get the gist of conversations, but I'm certainly not even close to being fluent. One interpreter my patient brought really had trouble communicating, well...just about everything. When he started finger spelling the names of drugs incorrectly, and also told the patient to go to a different hospital than what I recommended, I asked him to leave because he wasn't doing his job. Period. He wasn't helping. If I hadn't at least known some of the local signs for the different hospitals and known how to finger spell, I might never have known this so-called interpreter was grossly miscommunicating. Miscommunications such as those not only reflect poorly on the interpreter, but they also reflect poorly on me as a health practitioner and on the other clinic staff. If, because of poor interpreting, it looks like I - as the medical professional - told my patient to go to the wrong hospital or take the wrong medication, then I can be reprimanded and have limits put on my license to practice. That's a very significant consequence for me as the health professional. I don't think I should have to lose my license to practice, my very livelihood, because the interpreter wasn't good at his/her job!
So...why is everyone on this board so upset with how you presented yourself? Your original post and subsequent responses have all lacked professionalism. As a few others have mentioned, like it or not, D/deaf people ARE often "judged" by the professionalism of their interpreter. It's not right. It's certainly not fair. But it happens. So, before you get your knickers in a twist and respond to my comments in some childishly inappropriate way, take a deep breath and think for a few minutes about the image you want to present to others. Know that if you present an unprofessional image, as you did in your initial post, you won't go very far in your career.