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There are many rare languages in the world today in various states of endangerment or preservation. At Avantpage, we work with a variety of these languages to support their speakers and continue improving available opportunities for all people. When looking at supporting rare languages, and preserving them before they become endangered, education is of the utmost importance. Sharing information about a language and, more broadly, its culture can support better language preservation and cultural acceptance. With all this in mind, every month we’ll be highlighting a rare language we work with. This month we’re focusing on the Persian (Farsi) language. Approximately 110 million people worldwide speak Farsi, with populations of Farsi speakers concentrated in Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan. In Afghanistan, the language is officially known as Dari, and in Tajikistan, it is known as Tajiki. Farsi is the official language of each of these three countries but is a prestigious cultural language in many other regions of Western, Central, and South Asia.  Linguists classify Farsi as a continuation of Middle Persian, which was the official literary and religious language of the Sasanian Empire. The Sasanian Empire was the last kingdom of the Persian Empire before the rise of Islam, and it ruled from the 3rd to the 7th century.  Farsi has had a considerable influence on the languages of neighboring countries, particularly in Central Asia, Anatolia, and Caucasus, but also on other Indo-Aryan languages, especially Urdu, and even Arabic (Bahrani Arabic). With its rich literary history and famous works, Farsi is also considered to be the first language in the Muslim culture to break through Arabic’s monopoly on literature writing. Farsi is written right to left in the Persian alphabet, which is a modified version of the Arabic script. A notable feature of the language is that its writing system (abjad) includes letters only for consonants. Vowels, when indicated, are written using a combination of consonants or with diacritics.  As far as the Farsi language community in the United States, approximately 500,000 people of full or partial Iranian ancestry (unofficial sources even give estimates over 1 000 000) currently reside in the U.S. Experts distinguish three phases of Iranian emigration to the United States.  While the Farsi language is considered rare, we work with it on a semi-regular basis in the translation work we do for varying clients around the United States. If your population includes Farsi speakers, we’d be happy to discuss with you how to reach them through translation services. Call us at 530-750-2040 or request a free quote today to get started.

As the 2020 election draws near, it’s important to remember how much of a role language and language services play in an election cycle. While democratic elections are based on the free ability to vote, many Limited English Proficient (LEP) immigrants and citizens may struggle to effectively partake in the democratic process. Language barriers can create a lack of understanding as to how the voting process works, and insufficient translation of ballots and other election materials can prevent LEP voters from effectively understanding who or what they are voting for.  Democracy, and the ability to effectively partake in the democratic process, is not to be taken for granted. We asked our team members what democracy means to them, in an effort to illuminate the experiences of varying people with different languages and cultures, who live in different countries. We hope that, in this exercise, we may all come to value the democracy the United States provides for the true privilege it is.  Monika Wiatrowska, our Operations Manager, has voted in numerous elections. Her home country, Poland, is democratic and she feels “it is necessary and important [to participate in elections].” While this is true, Monika has a mix of feelings about elections in Poland, and whether her vote makes a difference.  Of elections in Poland, she says “there is no actual opposition to the right-wing government, which is very traditional, racist, and does not believe in climate change. [Participating in elections] is basically choosing the lesser evil.” Because the right-wing government has been prominent for a lengthy period of time, the general population struggles to believe that any positive changes will come out of elections. “The experience is more or less like fighting a losing battle. The opposition is weak, not united, and chaotic.”  All of that being said, Monika still believes in casting her vote and does so in every election. As to whether her vote makes a difference, Monika is conflicted. “Yes and no. Yes, because thinking my vote doesn't make a difference is ignorant and because it is my right to vote. No because, in Poland, the young people who should vote and make a difference are disinterested in politics.”  Monika feels lucky to not have experienced issues, language-based or otherwise, when going to cast her vote. Overall, she feels good about her participation in elections, nothing that she feels “fair to herself” by going to cast her vote regardless of the complicated system in Poland. Most importantly, Monika urges others to get involved with the democratic process. “People need to be involved so democracy can evolve and not become endangered. If you have the right to vote, it means you can care for what is happening in your city, your country, and the world.” To Monika, the most important aspect of voting in elections is voicing your opinion for a better world, and having your government see you show up. “I think that governments need to see that citizens care and are present in the decision making. There should be constant communication and transparency between both parties: the citizens and the government, so we can feel that we make a positive difference.”  Ensuring that every eligible voter gets to participate in the democratic process begins with ensuring all eligible voters can understand how to vote, and who they are voting for. If you’d like to prepare your election materials for the upcoming 2020 election, we can help. Call us at 530-750-2040, or request a free quote today. 

One of the key sets of regulations your healthcare translation projects need to comply with is, believe it or not, is the Affordable Care Act (ACA) - aka ‘Obamacare’. The ACA regulations set out requirements built to prevent Limited English Proficient (LEP) populations from being unable to access healthcare and insurance programs that are available under its umbrella.  A few different aspects of language accommodations are covered by ACA regulations. These rules predominantly expand on previous mandates which require translation and interpretation services be available for LEP populations.  The threshold for language services under the ACA is similar to the thresholds set out by other healthcare regulations. If the population of LEP patients from a specific language group is more than 10% of the population in a county, then your healthcare organization must provide translation and interpretation services to that language group.  There are ACA regulations that particularly address interpretation - the transformation of the spoken word among languages - as well. Section 1557 requires that federally funded healthcare organizations hire qualified interpreters rather than competent interpreters. According to this regulation, a qualified interpreter is one who: Beyond this, the ACA also distinguishes between qualified bilingual staff and untrained bilingual staff members. A qualified bilingual staff member has: Qualified interpreters and bilingual staff members are allowed to provide interpretation services to patients in healthcare settings under the ACA regulations. Those that are unqualified, or competent rather than qualified, are not allowed to provide interpretation services.  While the ACA regulations necessitate ongoing adaptations to your organization’s translation and interpretation projects, these are easily accomplished. If you’re in compliance with other healthcare regulations, you may even find that you’re already compliant with the ACA regulations. If you want to get started on your next ACA-compliant translation project, we can help. Call us at 530-750-2040, or request a free quote today.

In every industry, there are some key terms that you should know. Not only do these key terms make it easier to understand your project, they also make it easier to communicate with any vendors you partner with. Translation terminology is no different - knowing the terms that your Language Service Provider (LSP) will use can help to streamline the translation process and make it easier to complete your organization’s projects.  There are many different language services that an LSP provides. Knowing the difference between each language service can get you started on the right foot with your language projects!  Translation is the process for converting written text from one language (the source language) to another language (the target language). Translation projects can help to increase the reach of your written documents, and make your organization’s programming more accessible for all of your audiences.  Localization is “the process of adapting a product or content to a specific locale or market. Translation is only one of several elements of the localization process.” Localization also involves adapting graphics, fonts, colors, and other textual items to ensure that the content feels like it was created for the target audience.  Interpretation “is the facilitation of spoken or signed language communication between users of different languages.” Interpretation can be done in-person or remote, either over-the-phone or on a video chat software.  Desktop Publishing (DTP) is the process of reformatting your documents after they are translated. Translation can change the layout of your document, which is why reformatting with DTP is important. Your DTP team will adjust the text for any sizing/graphics issues, and ensure that it is as functional in the target language as it is in the source language.  There are a variety of different technological tools that can support your translation projects as well. The technology used by each LSP can be different, but there are two main types of translation technology that you should know:  Computer-Aided Translations (CAT) Tools are “software systems that human translators use during the translation process to improve their productivity.” This translation tool is particularly used for the creation of Translation Memory (TM) databases, which allow your translators to check your current project against saved translations to make the process more efficient.  Machine translation (MT) “refers to fully automated software that translates content into target languages without human intervention.” These tools are used less frequently by LSPs, but are still employed by them for different purposes. At Avantpage, we do not use machine translation for your translation projects. There is other translation terminology you should know, but having these in the back of your mind can help to streamline your projects and make communications with your LSP that much easier. If you’d like to further discuss translation terminology or get started on your next translation project, we can help! Call us at 530-750-2040, or request a free quote today.

There are many moving parts to a translation project. Whether you’re new to translating your organization’s documents or you’re a seasoned veteran, streamlining the process can be challenging. That’s where translation tools come in to help. Linguistic assets can help to organize your translation projects by making your translators aware of your linguistic preferences before beginning your projects.  Linguistic assets indicate key style preferences for your organization’s translation projects. Translation Memories (TMs), glossaries, and style guides are all considered linguistic assets.  Translation Memory reuses past translations to increase translation efficiency. When your translation project is completed, the language from the original (or source) document is stored along with the language from its translated counterpart in a secure database. This occurs with every project as you begin to build a translation memory. Glossaries, another linguistic asset, include a set of key terms and their approved translations. They’re particularly useful for indicating approved translations of industry-specific terms, and terms you want consistently translated across your documents.  Style guides, the last of the linguistic assets you should be aware of, inform your LSP and translators about your organization’s look, voice, and general identity. This is also a great place to address practical questions for your translators, such as how to handle translating acronyms and what words should be left in English. Creating and using linguistic assets in concert with your LSP has a variety of benefits to your translation projects and your organization.  Using linguistic assets can help to support your efforts to streamline your translation projects. We can help you create style guides, glossaries, and Translation Memory databases. Call us at 530-750-2040, or request a free quote today.

As the 2020 election draws near, it’s important to remember how much of a role language and language services play in an election cycle. While democratic elections are based on the free ability to vote – many Limited English Proficient (LEP) immigrants and citizens may struggle to effectively partake in the democratic process. Language barriers can create a lack of understanding as to how the voting process works, and insufficient translation of ballots and other election materials can prevent LEP voters from effectively understanding who or what they are voting for. Democracy, and the ability to effectively partake in the democratic process, is not to be taken for granted. We asked our team members what democracy means to them, in an effort to illuminate the experiences of varying people with different languages and cultures, who live in different countries. We hope that, in this exercise, we may all come to value the democracy the United States provides for the true privilege it is. Fernanda Aguilera, one of our Project Coordinators, lives in Mexico where voting is “not as technologically advanced as in other countries.” For every election she’s participated in, she’s had to follow a specific process that she notes would make it easy to manipulate the vote count. “We still use pen and paper, deposit our ballot in an urn, and the vote-counting is done manually by the people in charge of each voting place, city, etc.” Beyond the hand-counted votes, it’s important to note that the Mexican government isn’t an active hand in this aspect of the democratic process. “Government employees are not the ones in charge of the logistics of the voting place, but they recruit and train citizens to volunteer.” Fernanda goes on to describe her feelings about voting in a system like this, where most politicians and political institutions are seen as corrupt. “The general feeling in Mexico is of choosing ‘the better of the worst’. We do not trust our politicians due to corruption. Sometimes I feel as if my vote doesn’t matter, but I always keep informed anyway about the candidates and proposals.” While Fernanda feels discouraged about whether her vote counts in this system, she notes that she has never experienced issues when going to vote, including language access issues. She’s been able to vote at her polling place every time she’s gone to participate in an election. Though she experiences her fair share of doubt as to whether her vote matters, she feels strongly about participating in elections and being informed about all possible candidates and voting matters. “Voting is a right we all have, but it is also our responsibility. And part of that responsibility is being informed about the parties, candidates, and how the system works.” She urges others to get involved beyond voting in the election. “Try to get an insight into the system, so you can know how to create a real change.” Ensuring that every eligible voter gets to participate in the democratic process begins with ensuring all eligible voters can understand how to vote, and who they are voting for. If you’d like to prepare your election materials for the upcoming 2020 election, we can help. Call us at 530-750-2040, or request a free quote today.

Translation services are valuable to many different industries, regardless of whether they are regulated and required or not. Some industries, like the legal industry, don’t have regulated requirements for translation, but benefit from it all the same. Legal translation can benefit all parties involved in a court case, and help to make the legal system more accessible to those who may need it.  There are many different parts of the legal process that benefit from translation services. If you’re in the process of discovery, having documents translated by a qualified, certified legal translator can help to make the documents more accessible if you wish to submit them into evidence. In a hearing, having an interpreter can be necessary if the defendant, prosecutor, or any other involved party is Limited English Proficient (LEP). There are many other documents, like a will or power of attorney, that benefit from legal translation as well.  While the needs of your firm will be different from the needs of other firms, there is a host of documents that are commonly translated for law firms. These include:  Beyond document translation, the legal industry benefits from other language services. Interpretation, either in-person or remote, can benefit LEP populations should they be called for a deposition or hearing. ADA-compliant translation can also be of benefit if your client has a communication disability. Finally, localization can be of benefit if you’re a legal firm working globally or trying to expand into a new target market.  In order to be sure that your legal documents are accurately and appropriately translated, you need to use subject matter experts as translators. Your legal translation projects should be handled by certified, qualified translators who have experience in the legal industry.  We can help you with your next legal translation project. Our qualified, subject matter expert translators can meet all of your legal translation needs. Call us at 530-750-2040 or request a free quote to get started with your project today.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is in place to ensure that all populations have access to the services provided by your healthcare organization. Similarly to any other translation project, the ADA requires a certain level of communication to be achieved through alternative formatting of documents for those with communication disabilities.  The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulates the communication that healthcare organizations have with people who have communication disabilities. A communication disability is any disability “that affects an individual's ability to comprehend, detect, or apply language and speech to engage in discourse effectively with others.” Communication with populations who have these conditions should be equally as effective as communication with individuals without these conditions. Often times healthcare organizations must also comply with section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which requires federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology (EIT) accessible to people with disabilities. The law applies to all Federal agencies when they develop, procure, maintain, or use this type of technology. In many cases, it means that PDF documents must be reader-ready or accessible, and allow the computer to read them out loud in English and any other language it was translated into. In a healthcare setting, most patients that need ADA-compliant translation will have visual or hearing impairments. In these cases, alternative formats will need to be supplied so your patients can fully understand the treatment they are receiving, and what to expect from their care.  Alternative formats include, but are not limited to, braille, real-time captioning, large print formatting, accessible PDFs, and audio formatting. Each of these can help to preserve the original meaning of your communication while making it accessible to your audience.  ADA compliance isn’t confined directly to the patient being treated. For example, if prenatal classes are offered as a service to both fathers and mothers, a father who is deaf or hard-of-hearing must be provided auxiliary aids or services to ensure that he has the same opportunity to benefit from the classes as would other fathers. Similarly, a deaf parent of a hearing child may require an auxiliary aid or service to communicate effectively with healthcare providers, participate in the child's health care, and to give informed consent for the child's medical treatment. Classes, support groups, and other activities that are open to the public must also be accessible to deaf and hard of hearing participants. Finally, the ADA does not require a medical practice to provide translators or interpreters for non-English speaking patients. However, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act does. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act forbids discrimination by any program that receives money from the federal government and requires that health and social service providers give their limited-English-proficient patients meaningful access to their services, which may entail offering translation or interpreting services. These must be provided to the patients free of charge. We can help you with your ADA-compliant translation projects. Call us at 530-750-2040 or request a free quote to get started with your next translation project today!

As a healthcare organization, you face what can appear to be a daunting number of regulations surrounding translation, interpretation, and language access as a whole. While these rules may seem to add challenges for your organization, there are many different ways to make your next healthcare translation project easier. If you’re working with a professional Language Service Provider (LSP), a variety of language technologies are available to your organization as part of your partnership. Language technology, like Translation Memory (TM) and Over-the-Phone Interpretation (OPI) can streamline your language access efforts and help you to effectively meet the needs of your end-users. Interpretation is one of many different language services your healthcare organization will need to make use of to meet current regulations. Interpretation is defined as “the facilitation of spoken or signed language communication between users of different languages.” Interpretation can occur either in a face-to-face or in a remote context. Depending on the size of your healthcare organization, and the language groups you’re likely to interact with, you may find one method of interpretation to work better than another.  Face-to-face interpretation requires your organization to bring an interpreter into the room. Remote interpreting allows for your interpreter(s) to be located off-site. This can lower costs for your healthcare organization, and expand the number of languages that you can support. There are a few different styles of remote interpretation.  Other language technologies will also be useful in streamlining your healthcare translation projects. If you’re looking for written translation services for your organization, you should be sure to pair with an LSP which provides linguistic asset management.  Linguistic assets, like style guides and glossaries, inform your translators of your organization’s preferences prior to translating your documents. Style guides and glossaries will contain information such as what terms to leave in English, the tone and formality of your document, expected translations of certain terms, and other preferences. These linguistic assets are uploaded into your organization’s Translation Memory (TM) database, which is shared with all of your translators. Your TM is then used to inform translators of your preferences.  TM also leverages your previous translation projects to see if any translated segments match your current document. If there are matching segments, your translator will use those segments (always ensuring the translation is appropriately high-quality) in your current translation. In this way, TM can support a more streamlined effort at translating your documents - increasing consistency and efficiency across your translation projects, and possibly even saving your organization money.  The right LSP for your healthcare organization is one that leverages language technology to support your language access goals. Avantpage can help you reach those goals, and meet the needs of your end-users. For more information, or to get started on your next translation project, call us at 530-750-2040, or request a free quote today.

As the election draws near, one key part of preparation is to ensure your documents will be translated accurately and on-time. Knowing how long your county needs for each document to be effectively translated can help to prevent last-minute stress and worry. Following election translation timelines can help to increase the efficiency of your partnership with your Language Service Provider (LSP).  If you’re planning for the translation of your documents effectively, you won’t need to worry about translating your elections documents at the last minute. In the planning phases of your translation project, you should be sure to communicate with your LSP about your election translation timelines, requirements, processes, languages, and any other details that are pertinent. Engaging your LSP in the planning stage can help to create a collaborative strategy and partnership. Your LSP can help in the planning stage to identify any pending materials, prioritize materials, and sketch out a strategic plan for the timely completion of all needed content. The time at which you’ll need to send your documents to your LSP is heavily dependent on your county’s and state’s deadlines. When you’re planning for the primaries, for example, the deadline for sending your documents to your LSP will be dependent on when your primary is.  Ballots are expected to be sent in for translation in January. Your Secretary of State (SOS) will tell your county which candidates will appear on the ballots. This is the final piece of information that you’ll need in order to finalize your ballots before you translate them. For your election translation timelines, January and February will be the time to translate any complementary materials, such as ballot notices. All ballots needed should be returned to your county no later than February 17, so be sure to build your election translation timelines based on that.  How long your LSP needs to translate a document varies by word count, but generally your LSP will be able to translate on a flexible timeline. At Avantpage, we can increase our teams to comply with tight turnaround times. Our use of Translation Memory (TM) and other linguistic assets, like glossaries and style guides, make our team incredibly efficient at completing any project on any deadline. We can help you meet your election translation timelines. Call us at 530-750-2040 or request a free quote today.

There are many different language services that a Language Service Provider (LSP) like Avantpage can offer your organization. Part of ensuring that you’re working with the right LSP is knowing what language services your organization needs, and which of those your LSP is prepared to provide. At Avantpage, we offer a variety of services to help you effectively reach your target audience with your content.  We provide written translation services of documents, web pages, brochures, forms, and any other written content produced by your organization. Our quality assurance, compliance support, and multi-step translation process allow for assurance that your documents are handled in an appropriate manner. Beyond this, we have the ability to support high-volume translations with quick turnaround times, all while maintaining personal service. The process of website localization adapts or creates content to ensure that your site looks, feels, and reads as if it were originally created for the target audience. Beyond translation, this process involves revising graphic design, color schemes, symbols, and other visual elements so these are culturally relevant to the end-user. Avantpage offers multiple alternative formatting options to meet the needs of your ADA-compliant translation projects. Large-print formatting, braille, voice-over, and other alternative formats help those with communication disabilities to fully and effectively engage with your documents. Desktop Publishing (DTP) is the process of formatting and recreating foreign language page design and layouts for both print and web use without compromising the message or feel of the original material. Reformatting your documents after translation can help to ensure that your audience understands your documents without error. Your document will be reproduced with every detail accurately presented in the target language.  Avantpage’s Translation Memory (TM) software allows you to save specific terminology and style preferences for use on subsequent translations. Our TM pulls your preferences for translating certain words, phrases, etc. from your organization’s style guide and glossary and informs the translators working on your projects of those preferences. This language service can increase the efficiency and accuracy of your translation projects, as well as creating more consistency throughout your translated documents over time. We can help remediate your written documents to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility requirements. As with other language services, this involves the adjustment and adaptation of elements in your document, including text layers, color choices, and alternative text. Avantpage will connect you with highly-trained, certified, and professional remote interpreters to address your interpretation needs in the languages you choose. These native speakers will ensure that critical conversations are fully understood by all parties involved via telephonic discussion. We can provide verbatim or non-verbatim time-stamped transcriptions of your audio files. If your organization needs those transcripts translated into your target languages, we can meet that need as well.  Avantpage offers many language services to ensure that your organization meets the needs of your end-users. If you’re ready to start your next language project, give us a call at 530-750-2040, or request a free quote today.

When looking at the regulations that your healthcare complies with HIPAA translations, perhaps the most important one to consider is The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). HIPAA prohibits the unauthorized sharing of medical records and personally identifiable information without patient consent, which may seem to complicate the translation process as it relates to medical records and forms. However, if your hospital or health insurance organization chooses a Language Services Provider (LSP) that values privacy and clarity equally, compliance shouldn’t be a major concern. Having prior knowledge of how HIPAA and translation projects function can streamline the translation process for your healthcare organization. Because they are not employed by the organization using their services, translators are considered business associates under HIPAA legislation. Patient information can only be shared with a business associate for a specific purpose. This purpose needs to be clearly stated in a business contract between your LSP and your healthcare organization.  To fully comply with HIPAA regulations in translation documents, your LSP should incorporate the following: This patient information is often shared during the delivery of translation services and should be handled carefully by vendors. Before hiring an LSP, your organization should complete or consider the following things in regards to HIPAA and translation projects. Your LSP should show that its staff members are trained in HIPAA compliance, including how to manage sensitive information, recognize PHI, and protect the privacy of your patients. The most important step your organization can take to ensure HIPAA compliance and clear communication is to hire a professional translation company with experience in the healthcare field. Make sure to assess potential vendors carefully and continually monitor their adherence to the laws.  HIPAA translation projects can exist harmoniously if you know how to effectively choose an LSP who maintains regulatory compliance. If you want to start a new HIPAA-compliant translation project, we can help. Give us a call at 530-750-2040, or request a free quote today.