Medical Translation and Honesty Téma indítója: Marwa Seleem
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Marwa Seleem 
Szaúd-Arábia
Local time: 20:14
Tag (2019 óta)
angol - arab
+ ...
Medical Translation and Honesty!
There are many important qualifications to be able to translate medical documents, but the most important is honesty!
You have to be honest with yourself about your capability of doing the project before accepting it.
Are you really understand the subject or you're just going to search for some terms here and ask about other terms there, and that is it.
You have to be honest in conveying the meaning, especially... See more Medical Translation and Honesty!
There are many important qualifications to be able to translate medical documents, but the most important is honesty!
You have to be honest with yourself about your capability of doing the project before accepting it.
Are you really understand the subject or you're just going to search for some terms here and ask about other terms there, and that is it.
You have to be honest in conveying the meaning, especially when important decisions will be taken upon your translation, as in "Informed Consent Forms".
You have to honest with the accuracy of the translation, while any minute change may lead to life-threatening problems, as in "Patient Information Leaflet".
Honesty is the core of this domain! ▲ Collapse
| | | | | honesty, judgement | Jun 22, 2020 |
Very much so. I have often seen catastrophic translations, which were made by translators without a medical background, which can have (and definitely have had) major consequences for poor patients. I have ascertained the above since I am both a doctor and a translator and I sometimes I have the feeling that people have completely lost their spirit of discernment.
[Edited at 2020-06-22 15:05 GMT]
| | | | Marwa Seleem
Szaúd-Arábia
Local time: 20:14
Tag (2019 óta)
angol - arab
+ ...
TÉMAINDÍTÓ
Yes indeed, ability to judge and choose the more suitable term, need here!
| | | | | Poor examples | Jun 22, 2020 |
It depends on the purpose of the translation. It is entirely possible to translate consent forms and patient information leaflets without any medical training at all. These documents are written for ordinary people in everyday language.
There is a big difference between medical translation and run-of-the-mill drug documentation.
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Marwa Seleem
Szaúd-Arábia
Local time: 20:14
Tag (2019 óta)
angol - arab
+ ...
TÉMAINDÍTÓ | Not related to medical background | Jun 22, 2020 |
I agree with you, a Translator with no medical background can perform these types of projects with good research.
But I disagree with the other part!
Yes, they target ordinary people but understanding the meaning and conveying it in simple yet clear words is a little bit tricky!
| | | | Daryo
Egyesült Királyság
Local time: 18:14
szerb - angol
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| I would call it differently | Jun 22, 2020 |
"self-awareness" [of your own capacities and limitations] rather than "honesty" but otherwise I could only agree with you.
Translations are not "just words" - they can have very tangible real life implications, and if you get it wrong "on paper" it can turn even life-threatening in someone's very real life.
That's the case especially in medicine, but getting wrong for example safety instructions for dangerous machinery is as bad. Also, in anything where money is at sta... See more "self-awareness" [of your own capacities and limitations] rather than "honesty" but otherwise I could only agree with you.
Translations are not "just words" - they can have very tangible real life implications, and if you get it wrong "on paper" it can turn even life-threatening in someone's very real life.
That's the case especially in medicine, but getting wrong for example safety instructions for dangerous machinery is as bad. Also, in anything where money is at stake as in financial / legal documents, errors may not be deadly but still can be very costly - for those who need those documents. I'm always amazed how some people treat legal texts like if it was some ephemeral small talk of no importance. Always wonder whether they would have the same cavalier approach if their own money was at stake ..
You can not know everything, even if you limit yourself to only one field. You can always do some research / verification, but you still need enough prior knowledge of the subject matter to know where to search and be able to evaluate the relevance of what you find. ▲ Collapse
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