Interpreting in Medical Settings:

Synthesis of Effective Practices Focus Group Discussions

Developed by Marty Taylor, Ph.D., Project Consultant
CATIE, College of St. Catherine/NCIEC
DRAFT ~ 2007

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Background | Data Collection/Process | (1) Requisite Skills | (2) Advocacy/Support | (3) Cultural Differences | (4) Diversity | (5) Deaf Interpreters | (6) Sight Translations | (7) Patient Charts | (8) Conveying Meaning | (9) Crossover to Legal | (10) Job Description | Summary/Implications | Appendices | Download PDF of Report | Download PDF of Focus Group Survey Results

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Reading Patient's Chart

7. Do you read the patient’s chart prior to interpreting? Why or why not?

 Reading charts can be helpful.  “If interpreters are on staff at the hospital, it may be appropriate to use charts for preparation.” Sometimes they are offered and sometimes they are not.  Sometimes one interpreter reads the “medi-tech (database system) that lists appointments, history, primary documents, insurance, etc.”  This same interpreter never reads the paper chart.  Another interpreter accesses charts regularly and “looks at previous appointments, history of interpreters, specialists, and whom the patient has seen.” Another example is working with several patients in the ER and other wards at the same time.  By reviewing charts interpreters are able to plan their schedules and commitments to each patient.  At the same time HIPPA regulations may affect interpreters’ access to charts.  One interpreter “has found that medical professionals all react differently to interpreters having this information”.  One participant recommended that if interpreters have access to charts, deaf consumers should be informed. 

Several of the participants said they do not access patients’ chart.  Instead, they use different strategies to acquire information such as using the nurse’s board or talking to the staff about the basic history and the background of the situation.  Also talking to doctors directly and becoming an ally was reported as useful.  All of these methods can be very helpful to interpreters and their need to prepare for assignments.   

Interpreters who work together on a regular basis may keep a “communication log” which includes protocol, medications, and doctor’s names.  It helps interpreters prepare and makes them aware of what they need to know from one appointment to the next.  This is particularly useful when patients receive long term care on a unit and when one interpreter replaces another and needs to know what has occurred that affects the patient’s care.