By Marisa Rueda Will If the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it is that change is inevitable. Perhaps that is why Gabriela Siebach’s 2021 ATA Conference presentation, Maintaining a Career as a Language Professional: An Endless Journey, caused me to reflect on how staff interpreters have been forced to unexpectedly reevaluate their career trajectories as a result … [Read more...]
Cognitive testing using an interpreter
A psychologist and an interpreter find solutions to reduce linguistic confusion By Linda Pollack-Johnson I recently completed an interpreting assignment between a developmental psychologist and an autistic child during which the child was given a cognitive test. I have done many of these sessions over the years and I remember being disappointed that the session did not go as … [Read more...]
Interpreting in the face of a pandemic
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...]
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...]