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Get guidance on becoming a medical interpreter
Qualify to work as a professional medical interpreter in any state
Earn AALB's nationally recognized Certificate of Training
Learn from award-winning instructors
Train with 60 hrs of content, 100% online
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AALB's course instructors are chosen after a rigorous selection process for their extensive experience, accomplishments, and teaching excellence. They are each nationally certified professional medical interpreters and uphold the highest standards of their profession.
Kelly (Grzech) Henriquez is a certified Spanish medical interpreter in Richmond, Virginia. She attended Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), where she obtained her bachelor's degree in foreign languages with a concentration in Spanish, and also completed VCU's Spanish-English Translation and Interpretation (SETI) program. At VCU, she discovered her passion for interpreting & advocating for limited English proficiency patients, especially for mental health.
Kelly has been working as a freelance interpreter in both clinical and mental health settings since 2016. She has previously worked for VCU's Enhanced Teaching Practice clinic. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kelly has been producing medical interpreter educational materials, including informative content to improve the mental health training of medical interpreters as well as self-care resources for medical interpreters. She is also a staunch advocate for LGBTQ language access especially as it pertains to mental health.
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 operating room. Most recently, she has been interpreting for several hospitals in Seattle, Washington.
Yuliya holds Master's degree in Business Management and is certified as both an English and a Russian language instructor with more than a decade of experience in teaching medical interpreters.
Yuliya is passionate about the medical interpretation profession as well as improving language access for patients with limited English proficiency. She has shared this passion by teaching continuing education workshops and training courses for healthcare interpreters as well as by her writings 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.
Darren Reed started his career in bilingual settings 15 years ago. He is a nationally certified Spanish language medical interpreter as well as a state-screened American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter. After graduating from an interpreter training program at a local junior college, Darren started his own private practice as a trilingual interpreter. He volunteers his time with several professional interpreter organizations. Darren is a licensed interpreter trainer, licensed cultural competency trainer, and an internship supervisor. He also holds an Advanced Certificate in TESOL and Second Language Acquisition Methodology. He loves helping new interpreters find their footing.
Olga Bogatova, MSc, is a Russian language interpreter and translator based in San Francisco, California. She is certified as a medical interpreter by both CCHI and NBCMI. The bulk of her daily work is dedicated to the medical and legal needs of the new Russian-speaking immigrants to California.
Born and raised near Moscow, Russia, Olga earned her Master's degree in Biology and Diploma in Translation in 2010. She then moved to California and started working as a language service provider. In 2014, Olga earned a Certificate of Health Care Interpretation from the City College of San Francisco and became certified two years later.
Olga presented a talk at the International Medical Interpreters Association conference in 2018 about the challenges of medical interpretation for Russian-speaking immigrants. At the 2019 California Healthcare Interpreting Association meeting, Olga presented about her experiences interpreting for the elderly. She additionally spoke about medical interpretation at the professional platforms of the Northern California Translators Association and California Healthcare Interpreter Association in 2020.
Robin Ragan, PhD, is professor of Spanish at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. She has a PhD in Hispanic literature from the University of Illinois-Urbana. Dr. Ragan has lived in Spain and Argentina intermittently for over 25 years. She has spent most of her time in Barcelona, Spain. She has taught Spanish at the university level for over twenty years and has traveled abroad with her students to many countries, including Mexico and Guatemala. For the past five years, she has been teaching language translation and interpretation, including medical interpretation.
Dr. Ragan is an experienced, CMI-credentialed Spanish language interpreter. She offers her time pro bono to interpret for non-governmental organizations helping asylum seekers at the United States-Mexico border. In 2020, the American Council for the Teaching of Foreign Languages awarded Dr. Ragan the Global Engagement Initiative Award, and the Modern Languages Association awarded her a Humanities Innovation Grant. Dr. Ragan has recently published an article in the American Translator's Association Chronicle entitled, "Going All In to Help Asylum Seekers at the U.S.-Mexico Border".
Tram Bui is a Vietnamese refugee who came to the United States when she was 6 years old. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Ecology and pre-law from the University of California, Irvine. She is a Vietnamese language NBCMI certified medical interpreter, and has been working in the field for 16 years. Before interpreting, she taught 2nd and 3rd graders in the Riverside Unified School District, and later taught English as a Second Language for 5 years in Mesa Public Schools in Mesa, Arizona. She has been a Member-at-Large and later served as Vice President of Arizona Translators and Interpreters, Inc. She is a voting member of the American Translators Association.
Karena Poupard, MS, has been a professional interpreter for 20 years. She was raised in a culturally deaf family with deaf parents, a deaf brother, and three deaf aunts, all of whom sign fluently in American Sign Language (ASL). She is passionate about interpreting for deaf and hard of hearing patients. As a native user of ASL, she identifies and connects with the Deaf community, which inspired her to further her education in ASL, Deafness and Interpreting. She began interpreting in the educational system in 2000, and then decided to begin her educational journey in 2004 towards becoming a professional interpreter.
Karena has since graduated with three degrees. She obtained her Associate Degree from Spartanburg Community College in 2006 in ASL/English Interpreting. She then received her Bachelor’s degree in 2012 from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in Professions in Deafness. In 2015, she received her Master's degree from the University of North Florida in ASL/English Interpreting with a concentration in Interpreting Pedagogy. After completing her graduate training, Karena began a teaching career at the collegiate level. She is currently teaching ASL and interpreting at the University of South Carolina (USC) Upstate and Converse College.
Karena has been interpreting in the community at large in multiple settings over the past 20 years and has 10 years of Video Relay Service experience. Karena has also mentored emerging interpreters in ASL/English interpreting. She is passionate about her teaching and hopes to continue working with USC Upstate in creating a program area for signed language interpreting.
Nanyi Mateo is a Spanish language NBCMI certified medical interpreter. She is the founder and lead instructor of InterpreMed, a community learning website for professional as well as aspiring interpreters. She has created more than 40 hours of consecutive and simultaneous practice materials as well as memory retention and note-taking exercises. She has developed a standardized note-taking symbol system that she teaches in her memory retention classes. She currently works as a telephone and remote video medical interpreter for multiple agencies across the United States.
A: Our follow up surveys indicate that alumni of the AALB Medical Interpreter Training Program earn an average of $32.80 per hour as professional medical interpreters. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, interpreters and translators employed by a hospital earned a median salary of $50,980 in 2019. Your pay will depend on a number of variables; a newly qualified interpreter can be estimated to earn a starting rate between $20 to $40 per hour depending on your location, language, and other factors. As a part of your training, we will teach you how to leverage your credentials to maximize your earing potential.
A: Medical interpreters are needed in a wide array of settings. As a qualified medical interpreter, you will be able to work for hospitals, physicians offices, pharmacies, and other healthcare settings throughout the United States. You can choose to work from home, in-person, or a combination of the two. Upon graduation, you will receive a list of companies that we recommend that you apply to.
A: All students must be proficient in English and at least one other language To demonstrate proficiency in a second language, passing a Dual-Language Proficiency Screening Test is required as part of the application process. Once you submit your application fee, you will be emailed the link to complete a self-paced proficiency screening. All languages are welcome, as the class is taught in English and students use their second language when they practice interpreting. A high-speed internet connection with a computer, a microphone, & a webcam are also required to participate in class.
A: The demand for medical interpreters is quite high due to laws that require hospitals and other healthcare entities that receive federal funding to provide their limited-English patients with qualified medical interpreters. It has been determined that hospitals that fail to provide limited-English patients with qualified medical interpreters, and instead depend on unqualified interpreters such as untrained family members or bilingual staff, are legally discriminating against the patient and therefore may be held financially liable for damages. Therefore, the use of medical interpreters is quite widespread, and there are millions upon millions of Americans that utilize medical interpreters on a regular basis.
A: We accept students of all languages. The instructors will teach the class in English, and then you will have the opportunity to use your second language during the training during the simulated a medical appointments, allowing you to apply what you learned during lecture.
A: All course instructors are subject-matter experts, healthcare providers, and experienced professional medical interpreters. Course instructors may vary from class to class, and may be subject to change based on the composition of the class. You can read more about each of our course instructors in the Course Instructors section.
A: We will provide you will a full refund of the training fee if you contact us within 5 days of your registration. After 5 days have passed, the fees for the training program are non-refundable. If you already paid for a course and are not able to make it to the scheduled session, we can be flexible and allow you to defer to a future session as long as you contact us 14 days before the start date of your training, giving us time to find someone to replace your seat. A refund is not possible if the course has already begun. Learn more about refund and payment policies.
A: If you still have a question after reading the detailed policies and procedures, please contact us directly.
This curriculum is subject to change, as needed, to best realize the educational goals of the course.
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Orientation & Introduction
Introduction to Interpretation in a Healthcare Setting
Overview of the U.S. Healthcare System
Modes of Interpretation
Managing an Interpreting Encounter
Medical Interpreter Ethics I
Interpreter Practice Session 1
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Medical Interpreter Ethics II
Sight Translation Intensive
Roles of a Medical Interpreter
Language Access Laws & Regulations
Linguistic Equivalency
Memory Development
Interpreter Practice Sessions 2, 3, & 4
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Introduction to Note-taking
Medical Terminology Management
Medical Interpreter Ethics III
Introduction to Cultural Competency & CLAS
Introduction to Interpreting in Mental Health
Note-taking Practice Session
Vicarious Trauma Among Medical Interpreters
Interpreter Practice Sessions 5 & 6
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Introduction to Interpreting in Pediatrics
Introduction to Interpreting in Oncology
Cultural Mediation Scenarios
Get Certified! (What is Certification?)
Exam Training - CCHI & NBCMI
Mediums of Interpretation (In-person, VRI, OPI)
Business of Medical Interpreting
Interpreter Practice Sessions 7, 8, & 9
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Self-paced study material, including:
Pre-recorded lectures
Required readings
Introduction to Medical Etymology
Introduction to Medications
Introductions to Organs and Organ Systems
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The final week of class will focus on reviewing everything we learning in class and then preparing for the final exam. The final exam will be entirely written, consisting of essay, multiple choice, and true/false questions. Students must score an 80% or above on the final exam to earn their certificate. If students do not pass their final exam on the first attempt, they will be given the opportunity to study and take it a second time.
