Description:
Healthcare interpreters invest a significant amount of time in learning medical terminology and the ins and outs of the US healthcare system - and rightly so. However, interpreting encounters in healthcare settings are not all dense medical jargon - they involve real people speaking real language, which may include small talk, stories, jokes, idioms, and cultural references. It might seem that interpreting idioms is less important than getting the medical facts right, but idioms may contain key messages such as descriptions of a patient's progress or lack of it and speakers’ attitude to the situation. This 2-hour interactive class will equip participants with strategies for dealing with idioms and cultural references and allow participants to develop the newly acquired skills through group practice activities. At the end of the class, the participants will be provided with a list of suggested resources for further practice and study of idioms.

Delivery Method:
Live on Multiple Dates, from 9:00am to 11:00am Pacific Time

About the Trainer:
Yuliya Speroff is a Russian-English CoreCHI™ and WA DSHS-certified medical and social services interpreter based in Seattle, Washington. Yuliya first started interpreting over 10 years ago in her hometown of Novosibirsk, Russia and has since interpreted in a variety of settings – from a fighter jet factory to a live brain surgery, and most recently at a number of hospitals in Seattle.

Yuliya also holds an MA in Business Management and is certified as both an English and a Russian language instructor with more than 10 years of teaching experience.

Yuliya has found a way to share her passion for the interpreting profession and language access through teaching continuing education workshops and basic training courses for healthcare interpreters and writing in The Medical Interpreter Blog, which focuses on providing medical interpreters with resources and information for continuous professional development. In addition, Yuliya shares useful resources and relevant news in her Facebook group, Interpreters and Translators in Washington State, which welcomes interpreters and translators working in the Pacific Northwest to share resources, ask questions and find support.

Idioms & Cultural References for Medical Interpreters

CEUs Accredited for CCHI & NBCMI Certified Interpreters

Team Members