NCIHC Announces National Standards for Healthcare Interpreter Training Programs Advisory Committee

Feb. 28, 2010 - PRLog -- Moving toward the development of national standards for training healthcare interpreters, the National Council on Interpreting in Health Care (NCIHC) today announces the members of their Advisory Committee for its National Standards for Training project.  The 10 national experts on the committee were selected for their expertise in the development of curricula in interpreter training and/or the education/training of interpreters.  The charge of the group is to draft standards for healthcare interpreter training programs, drawing upon background research commissioned by the NCIHC as well as input from focus groups conducted at conferences held around the country.

The NCIHC National Standards for Healthcare Interpreter Training Programs Advisory Committee members are:
Marjory Bancroft, MA, Director, Cross-Cultural Communications, Columbia, Maryland
Eduardo Berinstein, Interpreter/Trainer, Boston, Massachusetts
Nora Goodfriend-Koven, City College of San Francisco
Katherine Langan, PhD, Mercy Medical Center, Des Moines, Iowa
Marilyn Mochel,  RN, Healthy House, Merced, California
Elizabeth Nguyen, MA, Children’s Hospital, Los Angeles
Robert Pollard, PhD, University of Rochester, New York
Barbara Rayes, Interpreter/Trainer, Phoenix, Arizona  
Agustin Servin de la Mora, Florida Institute of Interpretation and Translation
Laurie Swabey, PhD, College of St. Catherine, St. Paul, Minnesota              

The Advisory Committee will be supported in its work by the current members of the NCIHC’s Standards, Training and Certification (STC) Committee which is leading the project: Shiva Bidar-Sielaff, Karin Ruschke, Maria Paz Avery, Bruce Downing, Carola Green, and Cindy Roat.

“While there has been a significant spotlight on certification lately, the fact is that unless we can ensure that interpreters receive the training necessary to result in the competencies required of their job, taking a test is not going to be the fix that everyone is looking for” stated Joy Connell, NCIHC Board Co-Chair.   As Karin Ruschke, NCIHC STC Committee Co-Chair elaborated, “These standards for training programs will continue NCIHC’s work over the past 16 years to advance the profession of healthcare interpreting. This project is a key piece in the overall healthcare picture.”

For more information about the National Council on Interpreting in Health Care (NCIHC) and the National Standards for Training project, visit http://www.ncihc.org

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About NCIHC: The NCIHC started as an informal working group in 1994 and met yearly until it was formally established in 1998. The group is composed of leaders from around the country who work as medical interpreters, interpreter service coordinators and trainers, clinicians, policymakers, advocates and researchers.