Registration open for the 2013 IMIA Conference

Registration Opens for the January 2013 International Medical Interpreting Conference: Guadalupe Pacheco, from the Office of Minority Health, USHHS is Keynote Speaker

The International Medical Interpreters Association is happy to announce that Guadalupe Pacheco, Senior Health Advisor to the Director Office of Minority Health Office of the Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is the keynote speaker and will speak on the revised National Standards on Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) as well as the National Stakeholder Strategy for Achieving Health Equity. “The 2013 IMIA Conference will provide a forum to hear national and international perspectives on the emerging practices of providing quality interpretation services to a growing global village,” said Guadalupe Pacheco.

Medical interpreters have been benefiting from an annual conference since 1996. The field of medical interpreting has grown in ways that few could have predicted. Innovative approaches have evolved into common practices that are being widely disseminated and adapted. Several standards and language access policies have been adopted at the state, national and international levels, spreading awareness about the importance of accurate communication and interpreting services to reduce health care disparities due to language access.

Registration just opened, and for the first time the IMIA has added a super early bird rate that expires July 15th, 2012. IMIA is encouraging early registration, which helps interpreters and other stakeholders better budget their trips. IMIA recommends the following to attendees: register first, book a hotel second, and buy the tickets last, as rates are not always cheaper earlier.

This IMIA led 3-day event has expanded and in just seven months will take place in Miami Beach Florida. “It was important to take the conference out of Boston to bring it to interpreters in other areas”, said Izabel Arocha, M.Ed., CMISpanish, and Executive Director of IMIA, “and Miami Beach seems like a great place to start”. The theme of the conference is Specialized Interpreting-Getting Beyond the Basics: Exploring Quality Interpreting for Multiple Specialtiesreflects on the in-depth level of skills and knowledge asked for by interpreters, and shared at the event.

It will take place in sunny Florida on January 18 – 20, 2013 at the Miami Beach Convention Center. “Florida is a state that is in constant motion and is more diverse than people think due to international tourism, medical tourism, and new residents from all over the world. There is a need for medical interpreters in many more languages, in addition to Spanish. We are happy to work in collaboration with IMIA to make this event a success”, said Gio Lester, President of the Association of Translators and Interpreters of Florida (ATIF). Panels and forums offer interactive discussion on relevant topics of the day, as well as over sixty very interesting workshops for interpreters, from Demystify Simultaneous Interpreting to New Trends in the Provision of VRI Services. To learn more about the conference, and to register, please visit the IMIA website .

About IMIA

The International Medical Interpreters Association (IMIA) is an umbrella association that promotes all standards and best practices in the field of medical interpreting. As an international non-profit organization of medical interpreters, it represents over 2,000 practicing medical interpreters as the ultimate experts in medical interpreting and as the best option for equitable care for minority language patients around the world. It promotes language access as a human right. The IMIA contains the only free international registry of medical interpreters, where they can be found by language, state, or country.

About ATIF

The Association of Translators and Interpreters of Florida-ATIF, a Chapter of the American Translators Association, is a 501(c)6 non-profit professional association incorporated in the State of Florida. Our association was established to provide support to professionals, students and end users of translation and interpreting services. ATIF is dedicated to promoting professional recognition and growth opportunities through educational and training initiatives targeting T&I professionals in the State of Florida. Website: http://atifonline.org

Source: IMIA – imiaweb.org
Photo: IMIA
Event schedule: 
http://www.imiaweb.org/uploads/pages/682..pdf

IMIA International Medical Interpreters Conference 2013 – Call for papers

The next IMIA (International Medical Interpreters Association) Conference will take place in Miami Beach, Florida, January 18-20, 2013.

The topic of the 2013 event has been chosen by IMIA members directly via poll and will be “Specialized Interpreting - Getting Beyond the Basics: Exploring Quality Interpreting for Multiple Specialties”

“The overriding mission of this conference is to offer an international forum to showcase the latest developments in the field, to investigate its opportunities and challenges, and to advance the quality in services provided to language minority patients worldwide.”

Thematic Questions:

Research:
1. What research is taking place regarding how medical interpreters are addressing specialized terminology with no term equivalents in the target language?
2. Is adequate knowledge of medical specialties a plus or a must for medical interpreters?
3. How are medical interpreters being defined in current research?
4. How much interpreting is occurring in non-specialized environments?
5. How can we narrow the divide between research and practice?

Education:
1. What medical specialties should be included in initial interpreter educational programs?
2. Are training/educational programs getting beyond the basics?
3. Is 40 hours of medical interpreter training enough to develop competency that ensures safe and accurate communication in a health care setting?
4. Can community interpreter training meet the educational needs of medical interpreters?
5. How are the established university interpreting programs responding to the growing demand for quality education in health care interpreting?

Practice:
1. What are some of the best practices in specialty subject matter expertise sharing?
2. Are interpreters specializing in one or more fields?
3. What happens when interpreters practice in a particular specialty, for example, a Women’s Health or Behavioral Health Clinic?
4. What are the benefits of specialization to interpreter practitioners?
5. How is national certification for medical interpreters affecting the profession?

Ethics:
1. What is actually happening when interpreters are called to interpret in cases of rare diseases or specialties that they are not familiar with?
2. How are medical interpreters coping with daily ethical dilemmas?
3. Interpreting for family when you are a professional. Is that ethical?
4. How do medical ethics converge with interpreter ethics?
5. How do professional interpreters who are not specialized in health care respond ethically to situations unique to the health care setting?

Continue reading on the IMIA webpage here – more information on the conference and how to reply to the call for speaker are also available on the page.

Deadline for the call for papers is April 20, 2012.

Complete info:
http://www.imiaweb.org/conferences/2013callforpapers.asp

The underestimated importance of medical interpreters…

This video was made by TAHIT (Texas Association of Healthcare Interpreters and Translators) to promote the use of interpreters in a clinical setting.
We just love it. It’s so strong and powerful…