Medical Interpreting and Cross-cultural Communication

When healthcare providers and patients do not speak the same language, medical interpreters are called in to help. In this book - the first ever ethnographic study of a bilingual hospital - Claudia Angelelli explores the role of medical interpreters, drawing on data from over 300 medical encounters and interviewing the interpreters themselves about the people for whom they interpret, their challenges, and how they characterize their role. Traditionally the interpreter has been viewed as a language conduit, with little power over the medical encounter or the relationship between patient and provider. This book presents an alternative view, considering the interpreter's agency and contextualizing the practice…