What is your name?
Vonessa Phillips Costa.
Where do you currently live?
The Florida Suncoast, USA.
Please share a bit of your background:
I am a heritage speaker of Portuguese, born to a Portuguese-American father and an Anglo-American mother who learned Portuguese, as she says, “in self-defense” to understand comments from my grandmother. I grew up in a diverse Portuguese-speaking Massachusetts community consisting of Azoreans, Brazilians, and Cabo Verdeans. I chose interpreting as my first career. I graduated in 2000 from the first cohort of Portuguese interpreters trained at Bentley College with dual certificates in legal and medical interpreting. Over a 24-year career focused exclusively on healthcare interpreting, I’ve held various roles, including freelance interpreter, hospital staff interpreter, interpreter trainer, translation services coordinator, language access program manager, and hospital director of multicultural affairs and patient services.
What you’re doing these days professionally?
I currently volunteer as Chair of the Certification Commission for Healthcare Interpreters, serving as Commissioner since 2020. I also volunteer on the Outreach and Membership committee of the National Council on Interpreting in Health Care and mentor with Found in Translation, a Boston-area nonprofit that aims to give low-income bilingual women an opportunity to achieve economic security through the use of their language skills and to reduce racial, ethnic, and linguistic disparities in healthcare by infusing bilingual talent into the workforce. In my professional capacity, I am the Sr. Director of Quality for the Health Care Interpreter Network, a collaborative of hospitals sharing interpreter resources.
What is a current translation or interpreting engagement you are completing (or one you have completed recently)?
I continue to provide periodic remote audio and video interpretation to keep my skillset sharp and stay current in my practice. With any interpreting skillset, the age-old adage applies: “Use it! Or lose it!” Regular, deliberate practice and real-world experiences are crucial for staying relevant as a frontline healthcare professional.
What is one of your greatest life accomplishments (whether personal or professional) to date?
Professionally, I am proud to have co-authored articles for the AMA Journal of Ethics, The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety, and the European Medical Writers Association. Last year, I was thrilled to be the first interpreter to pass CCHI’s novel monolingual interpreting performance English-to-English (ETOE™) exam, earning the CoreCHI-Performance™ credential, a game-changer in our field. CCHI is actively developing equitable certification standards, enabling interpreters of all languages to demonstrate their skills and qualifications.
What challenge(s) are you facing in your career?
Early in my career, I worked diligently to counter the prevailing narratives that heritage speakers were less qualified or incapable of fully succeeding in healthcare interpreting. During my first decade in the field of language access, I often found myself as the youngest participant at every professional “table”—from interpreter associations to agencies and hospital language programs. Fortunately, the challenges of youth are mitigated by time. Now in my early 40s, as I navigate midlife and my career’s midpoint, I am committed to keeping doors open for the next generation of interpreters, especially young immigrants and heritage speakers embedded in the communities they serve. My main focus is on strategic advocacy to ensure that healthcare interpreting remains a viable career path for practitioners and aspiring interpreters in linguistically diverse communities across the United States.
When did you first join ATA?
I have been engaged with the ATA for many years and attended its events whenever possible, even presenting at various ATA Conferences. Initially, I hesitated to become an individual member, given my focus on healthcare interpreting and the existence of other associations dedicated solely to that field. However, after experiencing the enriching networking and learning opportunities at ATA64 in Miami, I decided to take the plunge and became an ATA member. I quickly joined the Interpreters Division, the Medical Division, and the PLD to deepen my involvement and expand my professional network.
How has ATA and/or PLD membership benefited you?
I am a huge fan of the ATA Chronicle, and it’s great to be able to peruse current and past editions! I’m also enjoying taking a “peek around the corner,” so to speak, in meeting interpreters and translators who work in various specialties. This exposure has broadened my understanding of the T&I field beyond healthcare interpreting, and I’m happy to learn from you all.
What do you enjoy doing outside of translation and interpreting?
I love to read and write. However, finding time to engage in recreational reading and writing has been challenging as a mom to a young child and a puppy. I hope to soon carve out time to return to writing for pleasure.
If you weren’t a translator or interpreter, what would you be and why?
I have considered pursuing a career as a private detective. I’ve always been drawn to investigative work and relish the challenge of “finding” what’s typically considered “lost” or “unknown.”
What is your favorite book of Portuguese-language literature?
Given the profound significance of the Portuguese language in my family heritage and its status as my husband’s primary language, we are committed to raising our young son as a fully proficient bilingual. Achieving this in the U.S. requires considerable effort; we are dedicated to creating an immersive environment to foster his linguistic development. This involves living in a Portuguese-speaking community, speaking Portuguese at home as consistently as possible, and engaging in daily reading sessions—practices my parents adopted with me during my childhood. Recently, my favorite Portuguese-language reads are the children’s books my mother-in-law sends from Brazil and the Portuguese translations of the Bible, which we use during worship in our local Portuguese-language congregation.
What message would you wish to share with your fellow translators and interpreters?
I look forward to meeting as many of you as possible—online and in person at ATA65 in Portland!
Where is the best place to connect with you?
Between my personal and professional commitments, I juggle about four different mailboxes. The quickest way to reach me is on LinkedIn.
Thank you.
We really appreciate the opportunity to learn a little more about you.
Are you a PLD Member? We want to feature you, as our members are our greatest asset! We’ll be happy to receive your submission and give you more visibility as you grow in your career.
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