An Overview of Medical Interpreting in Brazil

Abstract

Among the settings where there is a need for interpreting services, healthcare contexts require special attention, given the complex nature of medical practice, which consequently imposes different challenges to interpreters. In Brazil, the language barriers faced by patients who do not speak Portuguese are handled mostly by volunteers without any specific training. This article gives an overview of the current demands for interpreters in medical settings in the country and the need for analysis and actions aimed at the development of a professional field to ensure access to health services in the country for linguistic minorities by qualified interpreters. There is a need for public policies to recognize the demand and elaborate linguistic access tools. There is an urgent need to include this specialization among interpreting studies agendas, in the Brazilian context, to include interpreting for healthcare.