If you wish to become certified as a medical translator, you need to know exactly what this profession involves, how it differs from medical interpretation and what qualifications you will require. You may also want to investigate the tools needed for the role and explore whether your salary expectations meet the reality of medical translation work. So, we have put together this guide on how to become a medical translator.
Who is a medical translator?
A medical translator is someone who translates medical documents from one language into a different, target language while maintaining the meaning and context of the content. At Espresso Translations, we have a global network of qualified linguists who work in over 150 different languages and who are subject matter experts. This means they have both the language skills and knowledge of medical terminology to allow them to work in this healthcare language service.
Medical texts of whatever kind must be accurately and fully translated due to their sensitive and regulated nature. Not only does a medical translator need to have excellent linguistic abilities and qualifications, they must also have relevant experience in the healthcare industry or training specific to health care translation.
What does a Medical Translator do?
The role of a medical translator necessitates deep medical knowledge as well as linguistic ability. Much of your time will be spent translating documents like medical reports, clinical data and patient records. At Espresso Translations, our team of qualified translators also carry out online medical translations for all your personal or professional needs.
When you become an interpreter with a focus on medical situations, you will be helping with communication between patients and healthcare providers. This means you’ll need excellent people skills as well as fluency in at least two languages. Good knowledge of medical ethics and standards, set by the General Medical Council that govern medical translation and interpretation, is also required.
Medical translators work on a variety of documents including drug datasheets, training material, instructions for medical devices, marketing materials, medical bulletins and technical, clinical or regulatory paperwork. This is not an exhaustive list and there are many types of written texts that a medical translator may need to translate.
However, the main focus of medical translation services is accuracy in all areas of the work. A professional translator in this field has a serious set of responsibilities. Any mistake could be costly in terms of patients health, medical diagnoses, medication or treatment requirements, research outcomes or a medical professional’s practice. There are also financial implications if a mistranslation or omission has serious consequences.
What is the difference between a medical translator and a medical interpreter?
A medical translator translates the written word in documents, files, textbooks, leaflets or other paperwork. In contrast, a medical interpreter translates the spoken word.
An example of medical interpreting would be interpreting during a medical consultation for someone who speaks a different language to the doctor. Although translation and interpretation are often used interchangeably, these are two different and separate professions, requiring specific skill sets and are not typically done by the same person.
Medical translators must have extensive knowledge and experience of the written form of the language pair they are working with. For example, working from English to Mandarin requires translating from the Roman alphabet to Chinese characters. Therefore, translators must demonstrate proficiency in the written form as well as being bilingual.
While there are no direct translator or interpreter training programs for working with healthcare providers, there are indirect routes. One of these is the certification for medical interpreters. This is the Level 3 Certificate in Community Interpreting (CCI). It’s not specific to medical situations but provides all the necessary skills to be a successful interpreter. There are other routes which allow you to become a medical interpreter such as college or university courses for which you’ll have to take both a written exam and oral exam.
Also read: What is the difference between medical translator and medical interpreter?
How to qualify as a medical translator?
Whether you intend to become a certified translator or take medical interpreter training, to become qualified you will need to be fluent in at least one foreign language. High school diploma level French isn’t going to be enough, your knowledge will need to be at degree level. Additionally, your grasp of your native tongue e.g. proficiency in English, should also be of a very high level. Finally, you will need experience in medical work or relevant training in translating language related to the medical field.
There is no singular pathway to becoming a medical translator. Instead you will need to have fluency in your chosen language either through specific linguistic studies or a qualification in translation. Education to at least Bachelor’s degree level in languages is advisable with a Master’s being even more advantageous.
You can then take a specific medical translation course so that you develop a deep familiarity with medical terminology and jargon. This profession requires continuing education as you need to keep yourself up to date with all the latest developments in medicine. Getting your translator certification is not the end of your training and retaining your certification as a medical translator or interpreter entails lifelong learning and development.
What certifications are available for medical translators?
A professional medical translator should be accredited by the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (ITI) or the Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL). These are independent membership associations for professional translators, interpreters and other language service providers. Membership of these associations demonstrates a high level of professional knowledge, skill and competence which are essential for medical certified translations and medical interpreter certification.
In addition to the linguistic degree or diploma, as a medical translator you should also have a qualification certificate from a bespoke programme of study for medical translating.
Espresso Translations is ISO Certified 17100 which is the International Organization for Standardization’s requirements for translation services. Our certified medical interpreters and translators all have more than five years experience in the industry and specialise in particular medical translations.
Also read: How to Become a Scientific Translator?
What are the typical salary expectations for medical translators?
The average salary for a translator in the UK is just over £28,000. An entry level position typically starts at £24,000 but as you gain experience you could be earning almost £40,000. However, working in a specialized field as a certified healthcare interpreter or translator where accurate translations are in demand could mean you’ll earn significantly more. As you gain more experience, you can begin approaching some of the top employers in your particular field or look at international interpreting jobs.
An average medical interpreter salary is just over £32,000 per year or £16.50 per hour. Entry level roles start at around £25,000 but top end positions can pay as much as £42,000 per annum.
Are there specific tools I should use as a medical translator?
As we’ve covered, you have to take several steps to becoming a medical translator or to embark on a career as a medical interpreter. Once you get certified and begin working in the industry, you’ll discover several software tools that you can use to do your job more efficiently.
There are some specific tools and programmes that you can use as a medical translator including:
- Computer Assisted Translation (CAT) software facilitates medical translations by creating a database of frequently used terms. This helps expedite the translation process and reduces the risk of errors.
- Translation Management Systems take the strain of some of the repeatable and non-essential work of the translation process while leaving the important aspect of translating to the human translator.
- Translation Memory is a dictionary tool which is used with CAT tools for speeding up translations while maintaining consistency across projects.
Keep growing in the profession
It’s necessary for medical translators to maintain current knowledge of all developments in the world of medicine. Becoming a translator is an on-going process and even after you’ve received your certification or passed your interpreter training course, there are always new things to learn.
This can depend on the facet of medicine that you prefer to work in but new drugs, treatments, illnesses, devices and regulations are constantly emerging. It’s imperative as a medical translator that you keep yourself apprised of these so that you are alway current and working to the highest standards.
There is always room for growth in this profession and you could expand your career through multilingualism rather than being purely bilingual. You could also take a management role working with translation teams, become an in-house translator or specialise in a particular medical sector.
