In Our Hands: Educating Healthcare Interpreters

“What Happens Truly, Not Textbook!”: Using Authentic Interactions in Discourse Training for Healthcare Interpreters

27 G E O R G E M A J O R , J E M I N A N A P I E R , A N D M A R I A S T U B B E “What Happens Truly, Not Textbook!” Using Authentic Interactions in Discourse Training for Healthcare Interpreters Healthcare interpreting is a high-consequence setting in which accuracy is an interpreter’s most important objective (Napier, McKee, & Goswell, 2010). At the same time, there are often other challenges to deal with: anxious patients, sensitive topics, busy doctors, and difficult healthcare terminology, to name just a few. Being aware of how and why participants are using language in context can help interpreters to better predict the direction of interaction, likely topics, terminology, and potential communication challenges. According to Metzger (2005, p. 100), “one cannot deny that the basic work that interpreters engage in on a daily basis is the comprehension and manipulation of discourse.” Interpreters are essentially discourse analysts: when they enter assignments, they immediately assess the discourse being used, salient contextual features, and make interpreting decisions as a consequence of their understanding of the goals of the interaction, the power dynamics, and interpersonal relationships among the participants. Although interpreters are arguably experts when it comes to managing the talk of themselves and others, this is not always a conscious skill; they may not realize that what they are doing is actually analyzing the discourse in situ. We believe that learning basic techniques of discourse analysis can aid interpreters—from new students to very experienced practitioners—in learning how to better utilize those skills to improve their interpreting. Swabey Main Pgs 1-260.indd 27 1/5/2012 9:47:55 AM 28 George Major, Jemina Napier, and Maria Stubbe This chapter explores an innovative technique for preparing interpreters to work in healthcare settings by exposing them to discourse analysis techniques and, most important, to transcripts and recordings of authentic, same-language healthcare interaction. We provide an overview of the discourse analysis procedure and walk readers through the step-by-step process of the teaching activity, concluding with discussion of the benefits of using such an approach to train healthcare signed-language interpreters. Although we focus specifically on the training and education of signedlanguage healthcare interpreters in Australia, we are confident that the teaching activity is applicable to the teaching of healthcare spoken- and signed-language interpreters worldwide. Australia has approximately 300 Australian Sign Language (Auslan)/ English interpreters who are active and regularly available (ORIMA, 2004; Napier, Bontempo, & Leneham, 2006) to serve a signed-languageusing deaf population of approximately 6,500 (Johnston, 2006). Auslan/ English interpreters receive their “license to practice” (accreditation) from the National Authority for the Accreditation of Translators and Interpreters (NAATI) by either passing a NAATI test or completing a NAATI-approved course of study. Accreditation is available at both the paraprofessional or the professional level. Paraprofessional-level accreditation is an entry-level certification that assesses interpreters as being “safe to practice,” although the professional level is regarded as the ideal minimum level of competence. Australia is one of the few countries in the world that accredits spoken-language and signed-language interpreters through the same system (Napier, 2005a). Demographic surveys of Auslan/English interpreters in the last decade have found that approximately 70% are accredited at the paraprofessional level, and approximately 30% at the professional level (Bontempo & Napier, 2007; Napier & Barker, 2003). The same surveys also note that Auslan/English interpreters are typically female (80:20 female:male) and work part-time. Auslan/English interpreters are provided in various healthcare contexts through different booking agencies depending on the type of appointment and the state in which the deaf person lives. The general model is that interpreters are provided in public healthcare settings via the state government–funded Healthcare Interpreting Service (HCIS) in a particular state, and interpreters for private healthcare consultations are provided through the federally funded National Auslan Interpreter Booking and Swabey Main Pgs 1-260.indd 28 1/5/2012 9:47:55 AM “What Happens Truly, Not Text Book!” 29 Payment Service (NABS).1 A survey of 491 deaf Auslan users (ORIMA, 2004) revealed that the purpose for which most (almost 70%) deaf people required professional interpreting services in the 12 months preceding the survey was to see a doctor or a specialist. The demand for healthcare interpreting is high; thus, high-quality training for healthcare signed-language...