Limited English Proficient : Limited Access to Quality Care
Your Value of Communication is Depicted by the Language Service Provider you Choose
It is true that linguists are extremely underpaid — and by persons or companies led by persons that may or may not value your capabilities. Let’s talk about simple facts. A true linguist and trained interpreter or translator is not simply a voice box. They are a cultural ambassador, the keys to communication when the words two parties speak to not coincide.
An example of cultural ambassador:My husband is British — he speaks English. I find myself many times interpreting what he is saying to our American friends or explain his actions or demeanor which may be different to theirs. Why? Because I truly speak English — American English and British English and trust me there is a difference.
How does society determine if you are a good interpreter or translator? Well, believe it or not — if you are working that is 80% of your talent supposedly there right? WRONG. Huge companies — claim to have “qualified” interpreters. Claim that their interpreters are second to none. Let me tell you — as someone who has tested over 25000 interpreters in her lifetime this is a very stretched out statement. You cannot claim that you are an interpreter if you cannot understand paraphrasing, and if you can’t identify, simply by the sound of your subject’s voice when they are speaking with a hindrance (i.e. slurred speech).
When a company decides to hire a Language Service Provider (LSP)- they depend that LSP to deliver. That is their mistake. When you have a salesman from Sears selling you language services -there is a problem. Why are the sales people — not linguists?A linguist understands language needs better, they know the market better and they can answer questions without cue cards. Seriously, how many times I had a sales rep pitch me — and my eyes were rolling. *yawn* You just want me to sign, you don’t care about my needs. So all they do is talk money, efficiency, and how they are better than their competitor. I usually stop them and say — SURE if you can offer me board certified interpreters for certifiable languages and have your interpreters for the other languages pass my tests with my testers—at that price you have a deal. Guess what —- they went right back into how their training or university or course etc etc was the best . That is when I hang up. Because they won’t offer me what I asked — because there is no way — they can find those persons at the price they are willing to pay them to resell to me.
Most recently HERE is an article where a “qualified” interpreter cost the life of another. Now, the interpreter is not to blame here. I mean they are—-but it is actually the company that hired them and the institution that hired the company. Yes, the actual institution treats their language services as another vendor — like their janitorial service. Their services are chosen by procurement. Do you think this institution hires their social workers as vendors?
This interpreter botched an address, imagine them speaking on your behalf when you are sitting vulnerable in a hospital. #OMG Keep in mind — this incident happened in 2011 — it is now 2014 and so many hospitals and government institutions have these and similar companies working for them — to provide services. Yes, the LSP is to blame. Yes, the institution that hired them is to blame. Why? Because their sales guy was able to close the deal on price. For the price to be right — you pay for what you get. In addition, an LSP service should NOT be a call center, and should not be treated as such. The service you chose for LSP services should be a partner not the best bid out their. How can they help you ensure effective, efficient and accurate communication should be top priority.
If you are not a foreign speaker and do not think your business has a need these services- you are indifferent on the matter, yet truth be said you limit your demographic. Let’s talk about healthcare. This is something very important and Title VI is recalled on when referring to healthcare and interpreters. Hospitals rely on these call centers to offer premium services for pennies. Now, as board certified interpreter would you work for 20- 30 cents a min (and that is high rate that I am quoting)? Short answer is no, but if I am desperate maybe. So, you are board certified and looking for work. No call center will hire you -at a rate you deserve because you are too expensive. So, you park yourself at hospital or get a job paying you roughly 30-45K a year to interpret face to face with patient or clients for different government organizations. As a F2F (face to face) interpreter, you are required to travel to the location, ensure you are properly dressed, and get paid about 20-30 dollars an hour. So it takes me to the topic of discussion.
Name your price and that is the value you set for communication. This is very true.
Do you think that a major (or small clinic) hospital will decide to chose their phone systems based on price or quality? Quality right? You wouldn’t want noise or crackling in the background when you are communicating important health information that could mean life or death.
Do you think that a major hospital will decide what operating system to use to communicate between their staff based on price or quality? Quality right? This is Patient Information — we can have missing notes, or emails or updates to health records. That could be detrimental and even cause death.
Do you think that a major hospital will decide what language service provider they have based on quality or price? HA! The answer here is price.
So the questions raised are:
Do they not value communication between patients that are Limited English Proficient? Are their lives or health not as important as those that speak English?
I mean, if you are not willing to spend money to ensure effective and accurate communication, is my inference wrong?
Let’s take a step back — and take government institutions, insurance , and financial companies into account.
Do they not value communication between their clients that are LEPs?
Are LEPs not as important as clients that speak English?
Is their money any less green?Are their health needs less important?Are they considered less of a client than one who does speak English?
These are all really really contraversial inferred questions.
SOLUTIONS?
Solutions? it’s coming together, slowly but surely. NYC has created a min wage standard for interpreters.
Copperfield Effect—Illusions
Who’s to blame for that misconception?
The companies that claim they have thousands of qualified interpreters.
Example: If we suddenly had many potatoes — their price at the supermarket would go down dramatically, because the supply is greater than the demand.
That is what LSPs do and have done — they have created the illusion that there is an abundance of such interpreters — driving the price down — when in actual fact there aren’t.
So the question is do you value your non-English speaking patient or client less than one that speaks English?
Next time you are hiring an LSP — think — your choice depicts the value you set for communication between you and your foreign speaking clients or patients.
Harsh questions and statements — but if I am wrong please let me know.
