Do a Google search for “professional medical translation services.” You’ll get nearly 6000 results. That’s lots of language companies offering the same service. So how do you know which language company to choose to translate your medical documents?
After 20+ years in medical translation, we know how to sort the best from the rest. To help you do the same, we’ve compiled 5 traits to look for in medical translators:
- Client-first mentality
- Experience
- Quality process
- External validation
- Custom resources
In this article, we show you how to recognize these traits. By the end, you’ll know how to choose the right medical translators for your healthcare translations.
Does the translator have a client-first mentality?
A sure sign of a professional medical translator is a client-first mentality. They ask questions. They listen carefully to your answers. As experts in written communication, they give you their professional opinion. But no matter what, they always tailor their translation services to your needs.
A client-first mentality ensures you get exactly the translation you want. For us, it’s a non-negotiable trait in any serious language service provider specializing in healthcare. That’s why it also underpins everything we do as a medical translation company.
Are they experienced?
It takes practice to develop research techniques. It takes patience to find and curate reliable sources of medical information. It takes persistence to unravel complex medical language. Only a professional knows when to translate a text literally and when to creatively reword it.
So the more your professional medical translator is experienced, the more they get the translation of your healthcare documents right first time. This cuts out any frustrating back-and-forth after delivery. It also ensures the translation is appropriate to your intended reader, be it a healthcare professional or a patient.
A clear, detailed process — the cornerstone of professional medical translation services
Even the best medical translators are still human. And humans make mistakes.
The only way to eliminate mistakes is a clear process. And central to ours is working as a pair. Here’s how we hit on this approach and why we find it so effective:
Sandrine Ever since I started out as a freelance translator, I’ve always leaned on my network to satisfy and retain clients. Of course it’s fantastic being your own boss. But it can be difficult to face every challenge alone. And it’s easy to lose sight of your goals along the way.
Having a partner helps us make faster decisions, stay strong, and aim high. In terms of translation itself, being part of a team means you can run ideas by your partner when you’re stuck on a word or a sentence. Plus you know every translation gets checked twice before going to the client. That’s a weight off your shoulders when you run a company.
Sophie Working as a pair would also reassure our healthcare clients. It meant each translation would be checked by 2 medical translators. It would also spare our clients having to find 2 separate freelancers.
Working as a pair also reassures our healthcare clients. It means each translation is checked by 2 medical translators. It also spares them having to find 2 separate freelancers. How do we complement each other? Sandrine is what we call “source-oriented.” She’s very careful that the entire meaning of the English document be reflected in the French translation. Whereas I’m what we call “target-oriented.” My strength is in ensuring that the French content is easy and enjoyable to read. Even if, sometimes, this means slightly “deviating” from the original document. When each of us works to our strengths, the accuracy and overall quality of the translation is lifted.
Another advantage for our clients is that we specialize in different fields of healthcare. Cardiology is Sandrine’s thing, for example. Orthopedics is mine.
Check out our FAQ page for more about our process.
Does the translator have external validation?
How can you tell whether a translator’s experience has made them any good? How do you know whether their quality process is based on best practice? Luckily for you, there are 2 ways you can check:
Professional organizations
Verify whether the medical translator is a member of a professional organization. In many organizations, translators must pass a test in their languages to join. Sometimes, they must submit their experience, qualifications, and references for assessment. Basically, they only get in if the quality of their work has been peer-approved. We are both Qualified Members of the ITI, the Institute of Translation and Interpreting in the UK.
International standards
Check that the translator’s process is based on best practice. At pro re nata, for example, our translation quality process is certified to ISO 17100, the global quality standard for language services. External validation is always a reassuring sign. It means the translator is trusted by others to meet the standards of the language industry. Scroll to the bottom of our About page for our affiliations and certifications.
Do they have custom resources?
By “resources,” we mean glossaries, translation memories, termbases, style guides, and other databases of validated terminology and usage. And by “custom,” we mean resources that are the unique product of the translator’s feedback + quality process × experience. At pro re nata, we translate 1 million words a year. Every single word is carefully selected. And those selections are recorded in our custom resources.
Why are custom resources important?
They speed up the time it takes to produce medical translations that are terminologically accurate and audience-appropriate. They also guarantee consistency between projects, as these resources ensure we use your preferred terms and wordings every time. And there you have it — 5 traits to watch out for when purchasing professional medical translation services. If this article was a useful read, feel free to share it. And if you have any questions, you need only ask.