By Carol Shaw On January 21, 2020, the state of Washington reported the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the United States; on February 29, it announced the country’s first COVID-19-related death. The virus has since spread across the country, just as it has around the globe. And as the world hunkers down against COVID-19, those of us who work in language access services … [Read more...]
Vicarious trauma and interpreters
By Cristina Helmerichs The first time I heard of interpreters experiencing vicarious trauma was in 2000. First it was mentioned in relation to the interpreters working during a trial related to the Balkan Wars at the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague. But the idea was quickly expanded to include all interpreters working directly with victims of crime and/or … [Read more...]
Art and interpretation
By Carol Shaw World-renowned Ecuadorian artist Ramón Piaguaje often paints in bare feet. He closes his eyes from time to time, sometimes squinting to reduce his field of vision to a single spot on the canvas. His canvases can be quite large. His subject certainly is. Piaguaje paints the vast Amazon-basin forest where he was born and raised. Each brush stroke speaks with … [Read more...]
Interpreting “In Flanders Fields”
By Angela Fairbank Previously published in the STIBC Voice October 2019 edition, reprinted with permission. Since I began working as a peripatetic health care interpreter in the lower mainland of British Columbia, I have experienced not only situations I was prepared for, i.e. appointments that go pretty much as planned, but also some challenges. For this type of job, … [Read more...]
Phone, video, or in-person interpreting? One size may not fit all
By Anna Martorell Fuste and Daniela Elizabeth Obregon Andrea* and her mother begin their journey in Fullerton, CA. Slowly, they make their way through the greater Los Angeles area, braving the unusual rainy Southern California weather. They arrive safely and on time for Andrea’s cardiology appointment on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, home of Children’s Hospital Los … [Read more...]